COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Chamber of Commerce hosted the 2022 Impact Ohio event at the Greater Columbus Convention Center on Thursday afternoon to discuss the next steps for political leaders post election.
While Republicans swept the statewide races on the ballot, Democrats picked up a seat in Congress. Greg Landsman knocked out incumbent Steve Chabot in the 1st congressional district.
Mike Carey and Troy Balderson both won re-election on Tuesday, while Anthony Gonzalez didn’t run this time around. The balance of power in both chambers is still up in the air, but they’re hoping if Republicans take control, they can cut down on the amount of money being spent and more oversight to how it’s being used.
They hope to do this by taking back some of the COVID relief dollars sent to cities and states and also gain energy independence by tapping into the gas and oil provided in the U.S.
Gonzalez will leave Congress soon, and he shared his takeaway from his time in Washington. He was one of the few Republicans who voted to impeach former president Donald Trump following January 6th. He said the key for Republicans moving forward actually lies more in the primaries than the general election.
“The primary is the fight and if you get the wrong person through the primary, you’re kind of stuck with them and that leadership that they show will filter out in their own communities and so in a world where primary turnout is around 20% that’s a problem,” said Gonzalez. “We all have a responsibility to get that primary turnout, to like 60%. If it were, I think our politics would improve dramatically.”
All three congressmen said their focus when returning to Washington is trying to make life more manageable for the average American, and they’re hoping to do that by slowing down fiscal spending. The economy was a big topic of discussion. Business leaders weighed in on the topic to discuss how Ohio can attract new companies and new employees.
According to Jobs Ohio, since 2019 the state has gained 44 companies from the coasts, meaning they’ve moved their headquarters from places like California and New York to the Buckeye State. These moves brought 13,692 new jobs and $24.8 billion in new capital.
The Greater Cleveland Partnership was on a panel to discuss the future of business in Ohio and said that Ohio’s portfolio (Intel, Ford and various logistics companies), have created a reputation that can define Ohio’s stake in the corporate world.
“We’ve put Ohio’s reputation out there, as not just the Ohio that people knew in the last century but really the Ohio for the 21st century and that reputational gain is augmenting businesses that are here as well as a pipeline of interest to move here,” said Baiju R. Shah, president and CEO of the Greater Cleveland Partnership.
While Shah praised Ohio for its recent business gains, he said politicians and business leaders need to focus on making Ohio a great place for people to work and want to build a business, because there are a lot of job openings in Columbus.
Bipartisanship was mentioned throughout the conference. Republicans and Democrats both touched on what can be done to aid everyday families. While the two sides of the isle have struggled to come to an agreement about issues such as abortion, both agree that Ohio families need more support.
“The governor has had a lifelong commitment to children, whether that’s from a health care point of view, an education point of view, poverty point of view, prenatal, postnatal care,” said Jon Husted, the Lieutenant Gov.r of Ohio. “All of those things have been a priority for him and they will continue to be a priority for him.”
State Rep. Allison Russo agrees with Husted and hopes to pass more legislation between the end of the session and the lame duck year.
“Taking care of our mothers and babies, we’ve certainly heard some conversation with the governor that that is a priority of his, in fact he’s taken many of our pieces of legislation and repackaged them and I’m hoping that that gets prioritized,” said Rep. Russo.
Both sides of the isle agreed to work together to bring jobs, opportunities and relief to Ohioans.
