Democrat candidates debate

SANDUSKY — Local Democrats got an earful Thursday night from two candidates for an important state job, secretary of state. Dr. Bryan Hambley, a Cincinnati leukemia doctor, and state Rep. Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, faced off before a crowd of about 60 local Democrats at UAW 913 Union Hall in Perkins Township. The Erie County Democratic Party put the event together. While they found plenty to agree on, they also found ways to draw distinctions from each other. Hambley criticized Russo for accepting corporate political action committee money and said that as a member of the state redistricting committee, she should not have voted to approve gerrymandered legislative districts. Russo defended her vote and said her background in government leaves her better prepared than Hambley to serve in an important government post. What's the office? They are both seeking the Democratic nomination for secretary of state, Ohio's top elections official. The incumbent, Republican Frank LaRose, is running for state auditor. There are two Republicans running for secretary of state, Robert Sprague and Marcell Strbich, and a Libertarian, Tom Pruss. The primary is May 5. Hearing from the candidates Hambley drove from Cincinnati to participate, but through no fault of her own, Russo had to participate remotely, with her face projected on a screen in the front of the hall. Russo was forced to be in Columbus until late Thursday afternoon to participate in a court procedure for a lawsuit brought against her by Cleveland attorney Elliott Forhan, one of two Democrats running this year for attorney general. Forhan has a history of feuding with members of his own party. Local Democrats only found out Wednesday that Russo would not be able to show up in person, said Amy Grubbe, chairwoman of the Erie County Democratic Party. Russo told the assembled party faithful she was sorry she could not be there with them. Both of the candidates spent considerable time denouncing LaRose, who they accused of politicizing the office and trying to rig the system against state questions he dislikes. Both said they would operate the office in a nonpartisan manner. Both said they favor reforming the process of drawing up districts for lawmakers to eliminate gerrymandering. Hambley said he has made it a point not to accept corporate political action committee money and criticized Russo for not following suit. He also said it was "disqualifying" that Russo, as a member of the state redistricting commission, voted with Republicans in 2023 to approve gerrymandered maps for districts represented by members of Ohio's legislature. The fact that Democrats supported the districts was the "first argument Republicans used against us," Hambley said. "You can always reject doing the wrong thing," he said. Russo, the former leader of Ohio House Democrats, retorted, "It's really easy to talk about what you should have done when you haven't actually been at the table." Russo said she voted for flawed maps to prevent majority Republicans from imposing even worse districts and said she was vindicated when Democrats picked up seats in the Ohio House. Russo said that her government experience, including having to make tough decisions, showed why she is the best candidate and show why she will be effective as soon as she takes office. She also noted that she "flipped" a House district previously held by a Republican, proving that she can win a statewide election in Ohio, despite the fact that the state has been trending Republican. Russo said that given LaRose's efforts to purge voter rolls, every Ohio voter should go to voteohio.gov to make sure their voter registration is in good shape. A video of the forum was recorded and can be found at youtube.com/watch?v=OalVukO7hYM or by searching for "Hambley Russo debate" on YouTube. Grubbe spoke briefly at the meeting, reminding Democrats they can learn about local events and news by visiting the local party's website at eriecountydems.org.