Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Statewide Candidates Rally Leaders At GOP Dinner

Hundreds gathered in Columbus over the weekend for the Ohio Republican Party's annual state dinner. 

Their top candidate this fall used the event to send a message about the importance of November's election. Ohio Public Radio's Andy Chow explains.

One by one Republicans running for statewide office took the stage on Saturday night.

That included Auditor Dave Yost, Lieutenant Gov. Mary Taylor and U.S. Senator Rob Portman, who called on the local GOP leaders to rally their communities.

Former Mississippi Gov Haley Barbour was the keynote speaker, but it was Gov John Kasich who perhaps painted the clearest picture on why he thinks Republicans need to get out the vote.

Kasich: “This isn’t just about another election this is about a movement. All of the statewide ticket, the members of the Legislature all the way down to the courthouse. This is about a movement that they’re watching across the country. It’s a really important movement at a really critical time cause many of us feel our country has lost its way.”

The Democratic Party plans to hold their state dinner in June with President Bill Clinton as the headliner.

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.