Posts Tagged Dave Yost

Last month, the state GOP over in Ohio declined to endorse a candidate in the state’s upcoming primary for State Attorney General.  This wouldn’t be all that interesting if one of the two Republican candidates wasn’t Mike DeWine.

Does that name sound familiar? It probably does – DeWine is a former two-term U.S. Senator from Ohio who was unseated by Sherrod Brown back in 2006.  The Ohio Republican Party chose not to endorse a former a former Senator (who also served four terms in the House and one term as Lieutenant Governor) over Delaware County Prosecutor Dave Yost (for our non-Buckeye readers, Delaware County is largely made up of fast-growing suburbs of the state capitol, Columbus.)

If you’re scratching your head you aren’t alone.  It’s not as though the state party is refraining from endorsements, having made endorsements for both U.S. Senate and Ohio Secretary of State.  The issue it would seem is an attempt by the party to keep the growing Tea Party wing of the GOP happy. Local Tea Party groups appear to have gone on record calling for “fresh faces,” (of which DeWine is certainly not one) and some county parties have already made the case for Yost.

Political guru Larry Sabato went so far as to say the move was “truly remarkable.”  Although the GOP is not officially taking sides, this would seem to be a clear win for underdog Yost who is treating it as such. While DeWine seems to have taken the move in stride, it’s hard to imagine a lack of endorsement doing anything but harming his Nixon-like political comeback.

With so much talk about the battle for the heart and soul of the Republican Party it’s surprising this hasn’t gotten any real attention.  Although the primary isn’t until May, we at the Daily Horse Race will certainly be watching this one.