Republican Mike DeWine is an old-school traditionalist who plans to bring the annual State of the State address back to the Ohio Statehouse in 2022.
DeWine skipped giving the in-person address to the Ohio General Assembly for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While DeWine didn't give the speech, he was in the face of Ohioans – online or on television – more than any Ohio governor in history.
Over a 15 month period, he held more than 165 press conferences that drew hundreds of thousands of viewers – far more than the number who typically tune in for a State of the State address.
"I don't think there is a governor who has more televised addresses to the people of Ohio than Mike DeWine," DeWine press secretary Dan Tierney said.
Related:'The Show' will not go on; Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine ends regular COVID-19 briefings
DeWine's first and only State of the State address was held on March 5, 2019, with then-House speaker Larry Householder welcoming the governor to the House chamber. Householder won't be there next time: he was expelled from his legislative seat in June after he pleaded not guilty in a public corruption case.
Republican John Kasich's first address in 2011 was met with angry, loud protests by public employees who opposed his plans to gut collective bargaining rights. After that, Kasich took his State of the State addresses on the road, staging elaborate events in Steubenville, Lima, Medina, Wilmington, Marietta and Sandusky. He delivered his final address in his hometown of Westerville.
"We do intend to bring back the tradition of the State of the State in Columbus – at the Statehouse," Tierney said.
No date has been set yet with the Legislature.
Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
Source link
