Meet Mike DeWine — Ohio's Next Governor

COLUMBUS, OH — Tuesday night was the second time Mike DeWine beat Richard Cordray in an Ohio election. Their first election showdown was in 2010, for Ohio's attorney general position. This time, the stakes were much, much higher.

DeWine, took about 50.6 percent of the vote on Election Day 2018. That was good enough to defeat his Democratic opponent, Cordray, who snagged 46.4 percent of the vote. DeWine will now become the next governor of Ohio.

On Tuesday night, the 71-year-old DeWine took the victory stage with his lieutenant governor, Jon Husted, and thanked supporters. He said Ohioans should get ready to go to work.

What exactly are Ohioans working toward? What is DeWine's vision for the state?

We can take his campaign promises and agenda as a guide. Like most Republicans, DeWine wants to curb "excessive taxation" and "burdensome regulation." He also wants to support law enforcement — with more safety vests, for one — and tackle Ohio's opioid epidemic.

He released a 12-point plan to reduce the drug crisis, most of which revolves around expanding law enforcement's ability to curtail trafficking, rolling out a preventive media campaign, and funneling resources toward education and rehabilitation programs.

All of that is fairly traditional for an Ohio Republican. DeWine does depart from party norms on several key issues though.

Healthcare

Like other Republicans in battleground states, DeWine was forced away from the mantra of "repeal-and-replace" for Obamacare. After realizing healthcare was a crucial wedge issue for voters, the new governor-elect pivoted and promised to protect coverage for Ohioans with pre-existing conditions.

He says his previous actions against Obamacare were directed solely at the individual mandate, which he felt was an overreach on the part of the federal government. The mandate dictated that everyone purchase health insurance, or face financial penalties. That mandate funded much of the Obamacare program, including protections for people with pre-existing conditions.

DeWine said he won't join other states that are suing the government to prevent the dismantling of Obamacare, because those lawsuits would re-empower the individual mandate.

On the pharmaceutical front, DeWine said he wants to eliminate the state's middle-man negotiator on drug costs. He hopes by directly engaging drug producers he can create a more transparent system and drive down costs.

Medicaid

The governor-elect said he does not intend to slice away at Medicaid protections for Ohioans, but he does have plans for the expanded program — namely, a work requirement.

"It is important to remember that the people covered by Medicaid expansion are adults who earn up to 138% of poverty. The goal of the DeWine-Husted administration is to get these adults work-ready, if they are healthy and able to work, so that they can get into the workplace and into a better way of life," the governor-elect said on his campaign website.

There are approximately 147,000 open jobs in Ohio, DeWine noted, and he wants to connect these unemployed persons with those positions.

Ohioans getting Medicaid may also have to take part in a wellness program — along with state employees. Medicaid managed plans will be required to provide education on preventive practices for health problems.

Guns and School Safety

All of the gun reforms DeWine promised are built around enhancing the state's background check system. He said he wants "to build a 21st century, statewide data infrastructure that will ensure we keep guns out of the hands of criminals and others who are prohibited from owning firearms."

Part of creating that infrastructure would be forcing Ohio's 1,300 police departments and courts to regularly update their filings with the state. As the term-limited Governor John Kasich pointed out, in many cases, records are not updated with the state, meaning someone barred from buying a gun in Ohio could still acquire a firearm.

In terms of school safety, DeWine wants law enforcement to leverage a Strategic Analysis and Information Center (a monitoring and analysis center run with Homeland Security). He promised to equip the facility with the latest technology, giving officials a better chance of seeing threats being made toward Ohio schools and children.

The Strategic Analysis and Information Center, also called a Fusion Center, monitors social media, news outlets, along with tip lines, police reports, and other law enforcement sources, the Dayton Daily News reported. Analysts at the Fusion Center can also access classified information, on a need-to-know basis.

Finally, the governor-elect promised to connect every Ohio school with a mental health professional. "Now, more than ever, we need to find ways to talk to our children and get them the help they need," the governor-elect's website said.

Education

Standardized testing in schools will likely be reduced statewide under DeWine's leadership. He said the overabundance of these tests limits the creativity and drive of Ohio teachers.

DeWine also said he would transform state funding models for schools, with the aim of making it more "equitable."

"With 608 school districts throughout Ohio, it is a challenge to design a funding system that serves the unique needs of a diverse state. However, funding is not about systems, it’s about students, and making sure these children have access to quality educational opportunities," DeWine's website said.

DeWine also wants to increase the role of vocational schools in the state, expand student access to technology, incentivize shared services among school districts (think bulk purchasing of goods), and make college more affordable.

It's unclear how those programs might be funded. Some of the changes are simple legislative fixes, like installing fixed tuition rates for college students. Modernizing technology in Ohio classrooms on the other hand...that requires money.

The Future

John Kasich became one of the most famous governors in the nation during his tenure in Ohio. He used his position to launch a presidential bid in 2016 and carved out a media profile for himself as a moderate Republican and "never Trump" conservative. He painted himself as a voice of reason.

Towards the end of his final term, Kasich began implementing laws to reform gun control in the Buckeye State. He also advocated for bipartisanship on more issues. He also vocally criticized the president.

DeWine will be pressed to take a different stance.

Since 2016, Ohio has proven itself to be a narrowly but reliably Republican state, sans Senator Sherrod Brown. A vocal Republican base urged DeWine to oppose Kasich and stand alongside President Donald Trump and his bombastic rhetoric. On the Monday before the election, then-candidate DeWine did just that.

On a stage at the IX Center in Cleveland, DeWine and Trump waved to a crowd of 10,000 at a MAGA rally. Trump blasted DeWine's opponent, Richard Cordray, in his usually crude style — simply calling him a "bad person" who would do a "terrible job" as governor.

While DeWine didn't model his own remarks on Trump's, he also didn't run from the vitriol and venom. How will that calculation impact his future as governor?

He'll certainly be forced to tow a line closer to the president's. Just ask the commenters from DeWine's thank you note to voters on Facebook.

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Photo by Justin Merriman/Getty Images