Tamie Wilson speaks at Monday night’s dinner.
Jacob Espinosa | The Lima News
LIMA —The theme of Monday night’s Allen County Democratic Party fundraiser dinner was fighting for rights.
Vice chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party Andre Washington delivered a fiery speech after speeches by Ohio Supreme Court Justice Michael Donnelly, Shelby County Democratic Party chairman Chris Gibbs and candidate for U.S. 4th District representative Tamie Wilson.
“Democrats must never forget that we, the people, have the power,” Washington said as he called on the party to re-elect Sen. Sherrod Brown, elect Vice President Kamala Harris and fight back against the Republican Party. “Women are going to decide this election. They are the tip of the spear when it comes to democracy.”
Wilson, running against incumbent Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Urbana), stuck to her talking points and disparaged her opponent for his inability to pass a farm bill, plant closures in the district and his involvement in the Ohio State wrestling scandal.
“I’m really trying to sound the alarm bells for abuse,” she said.
Donnelly promoted himself as a Democrat since the age of 17 but said he was worried about having to identify his party on the ballot running for re-election to an office that all candidates must pledge to remain independent.
“I’m an independent jurist,” the incumbent said. “I follow the law and don’t legislate from the bench. I wrote the dissent in the infamous boneless chicken case that went viral and to me, that was an example of judges redefining words and that’s not what we should be doing in the judiciary.”
Voters will decide between Donnelly and Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas Judge Megan Shanahan, a Republican.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5.
For more information, visit your local board of elections.
Reach Jacob Espinosa at 567-242-0399.
