DeWine will run for Ohio attorney general

By Marc Kovac

COLUMBUS — Former U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine has made official his intentions to run for Ohio attorney general next year, his first run at public office since losing his seat to Democrat Sherrod Brown three years ago.

DeWine launched his campaign Wednesday in Greene County, where he served as county prosecutor in the 1970s. He made stops in Columbus and Cleveland later in the day.

“I will bring to the attorney general’s office the same passion, the same determination, the same vision and the same leadership that I had [when I was elected to the] Greene County Prosecutor’s Office,” he told Statehouse reporters. “I will bring that same passion, I will bring that same energy.”

DeWine served in the Ohio Senate before winning election to the U.S. House, where he served four terms. He was lieutenant governor under George Voinovich for one term, then served in the U.S. Senate for two terms until losing to Brown in 2006.

DeWine already has competition for the Republican nomination: Dave Yost, Delaware County prosecutor, has garnered endorsements from more than two-thirds of the Republican prosecutors across the state.

In a released statement, Yost said, “I will run on my record as a prosecutor and look forward to the opportunity to compare my record with my opponent’s. We differ on many issues. More importantly, I relish the chance to contrast my record in the courtroom with Richard Cordray’s lack thereof.”

The winner of the Republican primary will take on Cordray, who won election to the post in November to complete the term left vacant after former Attorney General Marc Dann resigned.

DeWine said he would run on a platform that includes quicker processing of criminal evidence, improved use of new technologies to identify and prosecute illegal activities and consistency in dealing with fraud and corruption “at all levels of government, wherever we find it.”

“The economy is in shambles” he said, adding later, “The fact is that we are never going to see business prosper in this state if crime is rampant. If we care about jobs, if we care about our economy, we have to make employees safe, we have to make businesses safe, we have to create an environment in our community of safety.

“And, while our cities need a lot of things — they need jobs, education, investments — the truth is before you can have anything else, you need peaceful and safe environments. Nothing, nothing, is more essential to job creation.”