The morning newsletter of the Ohio Capital Journal
Reporting for the People
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By David DeWitt | Editor in Chief
Good morning Ohio!
For the second year in a row, Ohio spent more than a billion dollars on private school vouchers, this time for the 2026 fiscal year.
A school bus. (File photo by Getty Images)
By Megan Henry
The total amount for Ohio’s five private school voucher programs was $1.173 billion, according to data from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce. Nearly half of the money ($532.8 million) was from the Education Choice Expansion vouchers. This is the third full year with near-universal school vouchers.
By Marty Schladen
The world's richest man Elon Musk is funneling more than $7 million to try to reelect incumbent Ohio Republican U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, according to an analysis of federal election data by a group demanding regulation of AI companies.
By Susan Tebben
New legislation coming at the tail end of the current Ohio General Assembly seeks to study early childhood education regulation in the state.
COMMENTARY
The Ohio Statehouse. (Photo by David DeWitt/Ohio Capital Journal)
By Erick Bellomy II
Candidates are asking for votes. Speeches are being given. Promises are being made. But where are the conversations about firearm deaths? Where are the discussions about protecting children from their leading cause of death?
STATELINE
The big challenges and policy issues that cross state lines.
By Tim Henderson
The size of investment in data centers is drawing concern as it surpasses all other historical booms and crowds out other job-creating ventures. Until now, no industry had driven the U.S. economy with such force since the railroad expansion of the late 1800s.
THE RUNDOWN
News from other states
By Tom Davies
Indiana Democrats are looking to ride a wave of widespread opposition to big data center projects across the state as they aim to pick up seats in the Indiana House.
NATIONAL NEWS
By Ariana Figueroa
More than 100,000 Ukrainian immigrants are bracing for the possibility they’ll lose their humanitarian protections Monday.
By Jacob Fischler
The Trump administration sought a federal court order Thursday to force California to purge 20,000 people from its voter rolls over claims they are not U.S. citizens, a major development less than three weeks before the midterm elections.
By David Lightman
Top Republican and Democratic senators have unveiled a bill to overhaul the approval process for energy projects. Environmental groups worry that streamlining reviews will make it easier for energy-gulping and air-and-water-polluting projects to proceed.
By Shauneen Miranda
Peter Daniell of Broomfield, Colorado, took home the grand prize Wednesday night after winning the National Civics Bee Championship in the nation’s capital.
CATCHING OUR EYE
The overtly partisan Ohio Supreme Court. The Columbus Dispatch’s Laura A. Bischoff reports, “Democrat Jennifer Brunner loses federal lawsuit over partisan election labels.”
With less than three weeks left before Election Day, a federal court upheld a state law requiring partisan labels for candidates running for appellate and supreme court seats in Ohio.
Ohio Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Brunner, the only Democrat currently holding statewide elected office, filed a lawsuit over the law, saying it violated her First and Fifth Amendment rights. She argued that forcing candidates to carry a party label conflicts with judicial ethics rules.
In July 2021, Gov. Mike DeWine signed into law a measure requiring party labels in general elections for some judges. Since then, Democrats have lost every race for Ohio Supreme Court.Jim Jordan’s plans. CNN reports, “House Republicans face a potential clash over who will be GOP leader if they lose the midterms.”
When House Speaker Mike Johnson decided in September to send lawmakers home early to their districts ahead of the midterm elections, House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan quietly made clear that he would have handled the situation differently, according to a source close to Jordan.
In a private conversation with one Republican lawmaker, Jordan said he would have kept lawmakers in Washington longer to hold more votes that would be politically challenging for Democrats. He also expressed interest in holding more votes on President Donald Trump’s elections overhaul bill that has been blocked in the Republican-led Senate, arguing that would help House Republicans on the campaign trail even if the bill won’t be signed into law.Bernie Moreno’s plans. Bloomberg reports, “Senator Expects ‘Last Supper’ Budget Bill if GOP Loses Power.”
Sen. Bernie Moreno wants senators to stay in session from the election through the end of the year without a break to pass a party-line budget bill with all their priorities if Republicans lose in the midterms next month.Ohio Womens’ Monument. The Toledo Blade’s Danny Eldredge reports, “State leaders unveil Ohio Women’s Monument.”
A new landmark honoring generations of women who fought for suffrage and equality is now established on the grounds of the Ohio Statehouse.
The Ohio Women’s Monument was unveiled Wednesday after more than six years of work by the Ohio Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission, Capitol Square Foundation, Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board, and Ohio Arts Council.
THE POD
THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, FOLKS.
Mahalo!
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