The elected official at the center of the battle over the most controversial issue facing voters this fall spoke out about it and the other two on the November ballot. Secretary of State Jon Husted said all three of the issues have one thing in common – they all have to do with monopolies. And he defended the decision to put the word "monopoly" in the title over Issue 3, the marijuana legalization issue that would create 10 growing sites and a system of regulation and taxes. But ResponsibleOhio’s Ian James, the head of the group behidn the issue, said the word “monopoly” is not fair.
It’s not just the three ballot issues facing Ohio voters this fall – they’ll also decide dozens of judicial races all across the state. The Ohio Supreme Court has now launched JudicialVotesCount.org to help educate voters. And hundreds rallied at the Statehouse this week to celebrate their sobriety and encourage others who are struggling with drug and alcohol addictions.
Medicaid is a huge chunk of state spending and its growth has been a concern since the 90s, when Gov. George Voinovich called it “the Pac-Man of the budget”. This week, two people on the front lines in the battle over Medicaid weigh in. They are state lawmakers on oppose sides of the aisle, and also have divergent viewpoints on Medicaid. Rep. Jim Butler (R-Dayton) was so concerned about Gov. John Kasich’s Medicaid expansion that he had considering trying to force a vote on an anti-expansion amendment during the budget debate. He's backed changes in the program, which he says will help receipients and save the state money. But Rep. Hearcel Craig (D-Columbus) says he supports Medicaid expansion, and is concerned about the effect of those changes on low-income people.