Ohio

According to Politico,  the polls that have been taken in Ohio indicate that Donald Trump has a 1.2% polling lead over Hillary Clinton.  From the local polls, it is seeming that Ohio will be one of the few toss-up swing states that could go in favor of either candidate.  This figure is likely to increase or decrease due to the last-minute visits that Trump, the Vice Presidential candidates and party advocates are making to the swing state.

The Republican Party started the Ohio visits with Mike Pence appearing in Ashland, Marietta and Swanton on Tuesday. Cincinnati, Cleveland and Columbus were visited by Chelsea Clinton in support of her mother’s nomination.  Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate Tim Kaine is scheduled to make appearances in Cleveland and Columbus on Thursday.  Trump closes out the last-minute visit spree to Ohio in Springfield and Toledo.  The announcement of Jay-Z’s participation in the Get Out the Vote concert in Cleveland on the fourth of November could have a surprisingly positive influence on Clinton’s standings.  The proximity of the concert to the elections could be a determining factor for how Clinton fares in the battle for Ohio.

–Sophie Golden

 

Questions for the Candidates

With the election now imminent, many questions for the candidates come to mind.  To date, the candidates have been telling their potential voters what they want to hear to win them over.  The first debate on Tuesday will give America a better chance to see what part of their candidates’ platforms are hot air and which are actually feasible.

If I were to concoct a question specifically for Hillary Clinton, it would be targeted towards her stance on welfare reform.  The Democratic Party has long been associated with social reform and the backing of the welfare system but I feel that this is a major point of conflict for many Americans.  They are worried about where and who their money is going to.  Most of this concern comes from some of the major myths of welfare but nonetheless I think Hillary’s response to this question could make or break her.  There is plenty of research to support the theory of the cycle of poverty.  What is her plan to break this cycle and relieve the economy?  Additionally,  the role in education plays in the cycle of poverty is rather large — does her plan have anything to do with education reform?

A less complex question for Donald Trump: Just how feasible is this “wall”?  There already is a boundary and people still find their way around, under, over, and through it.  Why is this such a huge selling point for him and what is it going to do for our economy?  How will he be able to make Mexico pay for it?  If Mexico doesn’t pay, how will our economy which is already in massive amounts of debt be able to withstand such a project?  My reason for raising this question is because I think it’s appalling how many people actually find this option reasonable.  Perhaps it is my bias so that’s why I would like to know the benefits of this wall and the logistics behind it.  This question is more targeted for my own self-knowledge — selfish, I know.

Be sure to tune into the first presidential debate on Monday at 9 PM EST to see just how many pressing public policy questions actually get answered.  Will it be a bullying battle or an educational event for America?

–Sophie Golden

 

 

Swing State Summary: Ohio

I’m sure many of you have been to, or at least have passed through Ohio at some point in your life.  I can also be sure that a good portion of you have had to carry on some small talk with Ohioans while staying or just passing through.  This small talk will always include the question, “So, what brought you to Ohio?”  Unless you were there visiting family because that is where you hail from, there are three other valid reasons to be in Ohio: A Browns game, a Reds game, or a work-related trip.  These reasons pretty much summarize the list that results from a Google search of, “What is Ohio famous for?”  All jokes aside, Ohio is considered one of the most deciding states when it comes to polling for elections.

Unlike other swing states such as Florida and Pennsylvania, Ohio doesn’t necessarily lean more towards the Republican or Democrat Party nominees.  The swing state over the past ten elections has voted Republican for five and Democrat for the other five.  After checking out most of the polls taken throughout September, it would seem as if the state is leaning towards the Republican Party.

Both Party candidates consider Ohio a major “battle ground” due to its whopping 18 available electoral votes.  Ohio’s 18 electoral votes are dwarfed only by six other states but those states are not deemed as the foreshadowing state.  Only once in 72 years has Ohio given their vote to the losing candidate.  With just this fact alone, it’s not hard to understand why the two candidates have been spending so much time and money resources in this state.  Donald Trump spent 1.9 million dollars in Ohio with an advertisement about her, “basket of deplorables,” comment.  His expenditure in Ohio was ranked third out of all of the states he has spent money advertising in.  Trump’s advertisement investments were certainly “trumped” by Hillary Clinton who has spent 22.3 million dollars in television advertisements in Florida alone.  From this figure, it’s not hard to extrapolate how much she has spent in Ohio.  Most of Hillary’s advertising strategies have involved Trump’s underlying racist remarks as well as her pursuit for social and economic betterment through the addressing of education, healthcare, and human trafficking issues.

Plain and simple — advertising can only do so much for each candidate.  The candidates times spent in the state speak volumes to just how important Ohio is.  Trump has visited six separate times whereas Hillary has visited four separate times and adventured on a three-city bus tour.  The specific focuses on public policy concerns for Ohio are their high taxes which rates 36 in the country, their whopping 56.8 percent state expenditure between just education and Medicaid, as well as the concern for an increase in public pension which has a negatively correlated response to the economy.  With the debates approaching, it will be interesting to see if any of Ohio’s public policy concerns will be addressed live due to its uncanny knack of being able to predict the new Commander-in-Chief.

–Sophie Golden

Sophie Golden

Sophie is a senior at Saint Bonaventure University majoring in Biology and the Philosophy of Medicine and Science.  She hails from the small town of Waverly in Western New York.  Her interests are not limited to the sphere of science.  In fact, her love for health and fitness allowed her to compete and qualify as a professional bikini competitor under the United States Bodybuilding Federation.