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The Purge: Ohio Edition

U.S. Supreme Court
J. Scott Applewhite
/
AP

In this week's Snollygoster, Ohio's political podcast from WOSU Public Media, hosts Mike Thompson and Steve Brown talk about how voters are purged from election rolls and why the issue reached the highest court in the land.

Voter turnout will likely be crucial in November's election, as recent polling shows the race for governor is extremely close. Chrissy Thompson, Statehouse reporter for the Cincinnati Enquirer, joins the show.

Listen to Snollygoster on theWOSU Public Media mobile app, on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And make sure to leave a rating and review!

In this week's episode:
To Purge Or Not To Purge

The Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that Ohio can continue the process it uses to remove voters from the rolls. The current law, also known as "use it or lose it," has been on the books for decades, but it's only in the past few years that critics raised concerns that the process disproportionately affects minorities. 

Supporters maintain that voters are given plenty of chances to keep their registration active. Either way, the process won't come into play in the midterms: Secretary of State Jon Husted instructed county boards of election to take no action until after the November election.

Poll Position

Two recent polls indicate that the race for governor between Mike DeWine and Richard Cordray is closer than many expected. One survey of likely voters gave Cordray a seven-point lead over DeWine. The result may hinge whether Trump supporters are motivated to turn out for a midterm election.

Trump is also playing a big role in Ohio's Senate election between Democratic incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown and Republican challenger U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci. Except polls showRenacci has a further way to go in his race than DeWine. 

John Kasich GPS

Our governor has been busy writing newspaper op-eds. Most recently, he criticised President Trump's agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, calling it "long on form and short on substance."

Mike Thompson spends much of his time correcting people who mispronounce the name of his hometown – Worcester, Massachusetts. Mike studied broadcast journalism at Syracuse University when he was not running in circles – as a distance runner on the SU track team.
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