Petro brings track record to attorney general's race

At a time when many citizens view government with a jaundiced eye and officeholders with suspicion, Jim Petro has shown that public service -- with emphasis on the word "service" -- isn't just a political gimmick. Petro's seven years and 10 months as state auditor have been marked by sound management, aggressive auditing to uncover wrongdoing by government entities and public agencies at all levels and an adherence to honesty and fairness that has brought him national recognition.
Because of term limits, Petro cannot run for re-election this year, but he wants to continue serving the people of Ohio. He has earned that opportunity.
Next month, Petro will be on the ballot as the Republican nominee for attorney general and will be up against Democrat Leigh Herington, a state senator from Ravenna. While Herington knows the intricacies of state government and has an understanding of the job of attorney general, he does not possess the experience or the record of running a major public agency. Petro certainly does.
Four years ago, when he was seeking election to a second four-year term, we posed the following question: "Why can't all elected officials be as dedicated and as results oriented?" The question reflected our opinion that Petro's first term in office had been exemplary. He had transformed this important state agency from the political joke it had it been under his predecessor, Democrat Thomas Ferguson, to a professional and highly motivated operation.
Petro won that election, but he did not rest on his laurels. The auditor has spent his second term not only meeting all the statutory responsibilities of auditor, but making the office an important resource and guide for many public entities around the state. He created the Uniform Accounting Network, which has enabled 1,600 small governments to be a part of the state auditor's operating system.
It is this commitment to innovation and service that has won us over and has led us to conclude that the state of Ohio needs Jim Petro as attorney general.
The position is being vacated by Republican Betty Montgomery, who has been term-limited. She has set her sights on the state auditor's job and faces Democrat Helen Knipe Smith in the general election. (The accompanying editorial contains our endorsement in the race.)
In the attorney general's contest, Petro's enthusiasm is contagious.
Legal experience
"I'm going to achieve a lot of big things," he says. "This is a job I have dreamed of doing." We believe him. The 53-year-old former Cuyahoga County commissioner has a wealth of legal experience, both from the private practice of law and from having served as an assistant prosecuting attorney, municipal prosecutor and law director. He has also served in the Ohio House of Representatives.
While he praises Montgomery for her performance as the state's chief lawyer, Petro says that he intends to restructure the office and create a management system that will feature seven senior deputy attorneys general who will be the line managers for seven sections.
Such a structure, he says, will guarantee that all responsibilities of the office are carried efficiently and promptly.
As to why the predominantly Democratic Mahoning Valley should set party loyalty aside and vote for Petro, we offer the following answer: the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District. As auditor, he launched a special audit that resulted in findings for recovery of more than $2 million against former MVSD directors Edward A. Flask of Poland and Frank DeJute of Niles.
Petro says that as attorney general, he will aggressively pursue the state civil lawsuits against Flask, DeJute and others who improperly benefited from a $50 million capital improvements project at the MVSD's water purification plant in Mineral Ridge.
He knows the case intimately, has analyzed the audit findings and believes the state must pursue recovery of the $2 million, which he correctly points out belongs to customers of the quasi-public supplier of drinking water.
The honest people of Ohio need such a fighter in the attorney general's office.