Valley lets Democrats down

Democrats didn't do as well in the Mahoning Valley, one of their last remaining strongholds in the state, as they had expected.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
COLUMBUS -- Republicans pulled a clean sweep in statewide elections, and they have the Mahoning Valley to thank for their success -- or actually the lack of success by Democrats on Election Day.
State Democrats had hoped for big victories in Mahoning and Trumbull counties, two party strongholds, for Tim Hagan, its gubernatorial candidate, and the other Democrats to help offset anticipated shortcomings in Republican places of power such as the southwest.
Democrats said their statewide candidates needed about 70 percent of the Mahoning Valley total and high voter turnout here, but not one of their candidates came even close to that figure.
Not only did statewide Democrats fare poorly in Mahoning and Trumbull, some of them lost in those counties. Also, not one statewide Democrat carried Columbiana County, which is almost evenly split between registered Democrats and Republicans.
Attorney general
State Sen. Leigh Herington, a Democrat from nearby Portage County, received 44 percent of the vote in Trumbull and 41 percent of the vote in Mahoning in his failed effort to beat Republican Jim Petro for the attorney general's seat.
Helen Knipe Smith, the Democratic candidate for state auditor, received 47 percent of the vote in Trumbull and 48 percent of Mahoning's vote, losing to Republican Betty Montgomery.
Governor's race
Hagan, who was born and raised in the Mahoning Valley, failed to get 50 percent of the vote in Mahoning and Trumbull, and was soundly defeated in Columbiana County by Gov. Bob Taft. Taft's campaign had hoped for voter percentages in Mahoning and Trumbull to hit about 37 percent. He got 46 percent in Mahoning and 47 percent in Trumbull.
Bryan Flannery, who ran for secretary of state, received 52 percent of the Mahoning vote and 53 percent of the Trumbull vote. But he was defeated by J. Kenneth Blackwell, the Republican incumbent, in the statewide election.
Democrats believed they had a fighting chance in the treasurer's race with Democrat Mary Boyle challenging Joseph Deters, the Republican incumbent. Deters easily beat Boyle, but she fared well in the Valley, capturing 58 percent of the Mahoning and Trumbull vote. She got 49 percent of the vote in Columbiana.
Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton and Lt. Gov. Maureen O'Connor, both Republicans, won seats on the Ohio Supreme Court.