State Democrats ready to take on the GOP

Looks can be deceiving.
If you look at Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern, he appears harmless enough. With his boyish appearance and slender build, the 41-year-old from Catawba Island often looks like he is wearing his father's business suit.
Then look at U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland of Lisbon, who almost assuredly will be the Democratic Party's gubernatorial nominee. Strickland's low-key speaking style, disarming smile and down-home charm makes a person feel at ease. You'd think the former minister and psychologist wouldn't hurt a fly.
But when it comes to what they want, Redfern and Strickland play hardball. If you don't play by their rules, you've got big political problems. You're either with them or against them.
The win-at-all-costs mentality is the only sign of life from the Ohio Democratic Party in about a decade. It is also the best tactic for a political party that has let Republicans walk all over them for years.
There have been some casualties, and plenty of hurt feelings. But if Strickland and Redfern would apply pressure to fellow Democrats, imagine what they have in store for Republicans.
This year's election is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Democrats to win statewide offices.
While Ohio is known nationally as a swing state, you wouldn't know it looking at its political makeup. Every statewide elected position except one seat on the Ohio Supreme Court is held by a Republican. The GOP controls the state House and Senate by respectable majorities.
But in the past few years, statewide Republicans have been rocked by scandal after scandal and are vulnerable.
It would be complete incompetence if Democrats fail to pick up seats in the state Legislature and fail to win at least two or three of the five statewide executive office positions up for grabs this year.
Dennis White wasn't getting the job done as party chairman under these ideal circumstances. There was so much talk in the fall of 2005 about White's "resignation" that he put out a statement at the time saying he wasn't quitting.
By now we all know that a politician saying that he or she isn't resigning or getting out of a race under any circumstances means nothing. Take a look at White for example. He resigned in November.
Redfern, then-Ohio House minority leader, was already supporting Strickland for governor.
A coalition was formed to not only get Redfern selected as party chairman, but to get the other candidates for White's former post out of the race and have those vanquished foes endorse Redfern for the post.
A number of those who attended the meeting to elect the party's next chairman said the event was chaotic and hostile and they felt intimidated by Redfern's supporters.
The result: Redfern won easily.
About the same time, Strickland's campaign and/or supporters were working overtime to get Columbus Mayor Mike Coleman out of the Democratic gubernatorial primary.
Strickland raised more money than Coleman. His campaign also approached a number of county Democratic officials "urging" them to endorse Strickland's candidacy even though the filing deadline hadn't passed.
Those tactics worked. Strickland's campaign picked up the endorsements of 32 of the state's 88 county parties, numerous Democratic officials and labor unions before Thursday's filing deadline.
Many of those endorsements came while Coleman was still a candidate. Faced with Strickland's endorsements and the money he raised, Coleman quit the race.
Strickland continued the winning strategy when state Sen. Eric Fingerhut of Shaker Heights, a Coleman supporter, entered the gubernatorial race. Fingerhut's gubernatorial campaign lasted a month.
Like Coleman, Fingerhut drowned in Strickland's endorsements and campaign cash. Strickland raised more than $3 million last year for the gubernatorial race.
Strickland will face lightly regarded Bryan Flannery of Strongsville, a former state House member and failed 2002 secretary of state candidate, in the Democratic primary. Strickland won't need to spend much money to defeat Flannery. He would have spent millions to beat Coleman or Fingerhut.
Instead Strickland will save that money, raise even more and spend it against his Republican opponent in November.