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Obama Wins With Help From Ohio

President Barack Obama won re-election to a second term last night. Ohioans elected Obama over Republican Mitt Romney by a two-point margin. Ohio Public Radio’s Jo Ingles reports.

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Democrats who packed into the new Columbus Downtown Hilton ballroom were already giddy with excitement after U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown defeated Republican Challenger Josh Mandel.  But when they saw news that President Barack Obama had enough votes to be re-elected, a loud roar went up in the ballroom.

Cheer

Former Governor Ted Strickland said the President’s victory is a big win for ordinary Ohioans Obama represents.

Strickland – You know to all of those people who are so rich and arrogant who believe they could use their wealth to influence our state….I hope they are listening…..we kicked your rear ends….

After the event, Ohio Democratic party Chairman Chris Redfern said he believes President Obama’s bailout of the auto industry was a major factor in why Ohioans voted to re-elect him.  And Redfern said he’s going after Ohio’s Governor on the issue next.

Redfern – It’s really remarkable that an incumbent governor of the state that depends so heavily on manufacturing, namely the American industry, would literally walk away from that industry and hold hands with Mitt Romney who believes then as he does now that Detroit should go bankrupt.  You take out the word Detroit, you put in the name Defiance, Youngstown, Toledo, Parma, Cleveland and 82 of the 88 counties in the state that have an automobile business in them.  It’s unheard of.

When asked whether the Republicans lost because they have become too closely aligned with the most conservative members of the party, Redfern responds this way:

Redfern – The Republican party has spent the better part of the last three years kissing the behind of the tea party.  They’ve got chapped lips.

Meanwhile, 6 blocks away at a Republican gathering in downtown Columbus, some Romney supporters were shocked at their loss.  Among them, Sonya Akin:

Akin - I’m just speechless.  It doesn’t make sense.  We’re sad.  We’re broken hearted.  We are fearful for our country.  It’s just sad.

Another Romney backer was bitter about his defeat.  Terri Smith’s explanation: (fade her laughter under your next voiced part)

Smith – Like Romney says 47% is a big number of those who want to take from those who work I guess and I’m sure that’s not a political correct answer but….

Mike Dawson was another Romney supporter, but as a republican number cruncher, he had a different explanation for Obama’s victory…more of a demographic one:

Dawson – Romney did not perform well enough in the small and medium sized counties.  He performed two or three points less than Bush did in 2004 in a whole number of counties and that’s what cost him the victory.  And also you can see in the auto bailout counties that it really did make a difference.

Dawson was talking THERE about republican counties in northwest ohio, surrounding the Toledo area, where President Obama did better than expected.  The president had campaigned heavily in Ohio on his support for the federal auto industry bailout….AND on Ohio’s unemployment rate, which had dropped from 10.6 per cent to 7 per cent.

The Statehouse News Bureau was founded in 1980 to provide educational, comprehensive coverage of legislation, elections, issues and other activities surrounding the Statehouse to Ohio's public radio and television stations. To this day, the Bureau remains the only broadcast outlet dedicated to in-depth coverage of state government news and topics of statewide interest. The Bureau is funded througheTech Ohio, and is managed by ideastream. The reporters at the Bureau follow the concerns of the citizens and voters of Ohio, as well as the actions of the Governor, the Ohio General Assembly, the Ohio Supreme Court, and other elected officials. We strive to cover statehouse news, government issues, Ohio politics, and concerns of business, culture and the arts with balance and fairness, and work to present diverse voices and points of view from the Statehouse and throughout Ohio. The three award-winning journalists at the bureau have more than 60 combined years of radio and television experience. They can be heard on National Public Radio and are regular contributors to Morning Edition, All Things Considered and Marketplace. Every weekday, the Statehouse News Bureau produces in-depth news reports forOhio's public radio stations. Those stories are also available on this website, either on the front page or in our archives. Weekly, the Statehouse News Bureau produces a television show from our studios in the Statehouse. The State of Ohio is an unique blend of news, interviews, talk and analysis, and is broadcast on Ohio's public television stations. The Statehouse News Bureau also produces special programming throughout the year, including the Governor's annual State of the State address to the Ohio General Assembly and a five-part year-end review.