Passage of Issue 1 is victory for Taft

COLUMBUS (AP) -- Voters' solid support for a popular highway repair program and a plan to create jobs by funding bioscience was a victory for Gov. Bob Taft, still reeling from historically low poll numbers and his August conviction on ethics violations.
Issue 1, which will provide dollars for road and bridge construction and give companies grants for high-tech research, had 1,423,727 votes in favor, or 54 percent, with 1,206,361 opposed, or 46 percent, with 96 percent of precincts reporting, according to unofficial returns compiled by The Associated Press.
Ohio cities, villages and townships favored Issue 1 because $1.5 billion of it will go toward bridge and road repairs and cleaning up old industrial sites in a program started in 1987.
The remaining $500 million will support Taft's program to invest more in research in such areas as the biomedical industry as a way to generate jobs, a proposal voters narrowly turned down before.
Taft appeared in some ads for the measure in 2003 but stayed clear of publicity for Issue 1 this year.
"I don't think this was about me," Taft said Tuesday. "This was about how do we create jobs for a better economic climate for Ohioans going forward."
Taft said Issue 1 was one of several efforts he backed to improve Ohio's economy, including changes to the tax code, efforts to limit lawsuits and a tight state budget.