Greetings!
Today is an important Election Day, although it may not feel like one. There have been no debates between primary candidates in any of the races that we have been tracking. Most have been postcard battles sent to lists of likely voters.
Isn't it a shame that we all aren't likely voters?
Here are a few things to keep in mind for those of you who plan to vote today or are on the fence about whether to put forth your best effort to save democracy, which — like our bodies, our minds, our spirits, our children — needs regular nourishment.
• The 21st State Senate District Democratic primary pits state rep. Kent Smith of Euclid against former state rep. John Barnes of Cleveland. Barnes' campaign is being financed by the Americans for Prosperity, flagship political organization of the notorious Koch Brothers. The idea that AFP finds Barnes a favorable candidate should be viewed no differently than if his campaign literature was financed by the White Citizens' Councils of the 1950s and 1960s.
• The predicted low turnout will truly emphasize the importance of every single vote. This could play out in the House District 22 contest where state rep. Juanita Brent is facing off against Vincent E. Stokes II. The latter is a former gang-banger turned educator and pastor whose compelling life story and civic engagement may help him deliver an upset to the aloof Rep. Brent, who may be overly reliant upon her presumptive organizational strength as vice chair of the county Democratic Party to satisfy the occasionally demanding voters of Cleveland Heights and Shaker Heights. She's the favorite as a quasi-incumbent, but Stokes — the 2021 University Heights Person of the Year — is the hometown boy.
• Also on the ballot are seats for the state central committees of the major parties. Committee members are elected by senate district. Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin and former councilman Jeff Johnson are running to represent their respective districts downstate. If neither wins, there will be no black males on the Ohio Democratic Central Committee, which would be a sobering and unhealthy development, another indicator of declining black political power in places where it should be ascending.
Should Kent Smith defeat John Barnes for the 21st District Senate seat, next year will mark the first time in 50 years there has been no black representation from Cuyahoga County in the state Senate. That development will owe much to the concentrated efforts of Republican gerrymanderers to crack black voting blocs, but ineffective black political leadership also bears responsibility for much of this depressing likelihood. While Smith has had his difficulties getting along with some of his black colleagues in the House, Barnes was also regularly at odds with them politically. Given who appears to pull Barnes' strings, the 21st would clearly be better served by Smith.
This is the first election in the new era of County Democratic Party leadership by David Brock. Elected in late June in an upset over Smith, Brock hasn't had much time to make an impact, but we'll be on the lookout to see if and where his team might have made a difference.
See you tomorrow!
As always, thanks for reading!
R. T. Andrews