Ohio House 17th & 98th: Goudy (D) and Ku (D) Gain Newspaper Endorsement

The Solon/Chagrin Valley/Geauga County Times has endorsed Roger Goudy (D-Solon) and Raymond Ku (D-Bainbridge Township) in the 17th and 98th House Districts, respectively. Most of the editorial is reprinted at the excellent blog of the Solon Democratic Club, excerpts follow:

The most important issues facing Ohio are education and the economy, both of which have deteriorated substantially under 16 years of Republican dominance in the state capital. Those issues are followed by a climate of corruption that wafts from the governor’s office and, unfortunately, cloaks much of the GOP.

[Opponents Matt] Dolan and [Josh] Mandel ... evoke the feel-good but ineffective Republican Party line that has failed to address them. The continuing litany of favors to big business has not stanched the hemorrhage of good jobs, and the diversion of tax dollars to school privatization has been an exercise in futility.

Mr. Goudy, who has been in the field of education for over 30 years and is director of business affairs for the South Euclid-Lyndhurst School District ... understand(s) the importance of education – from elementary school through college – and will work to ensure that it is properly supported by the state.

Mr. Ku and Mr. Goudy know that an equitably and constitutionally funded system of public education is the key to Ohio’s economic future. They know that the diversion of precious educational dollars to the profiteers of poor-performing, unaccountable charter schools ... are a shortsighted panacea. They know that affordable college education is the way to build the technological work force needed to restore this state’s role as a national leader.