Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland Looks Vulnerable to Challenge From Pro-Life John Kasich
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
June 22, 2009
Columbus, OH (LifeNews.com) — New polling data in Ohio shows pro-abortion Gov. Ted Strickland looks vulnerable to a challenge from pro-life former Congressman John Kasich. The potential contest between the two could be one of the marquee races in 2010 and would be one with clear contrast on pro-life issues like abortion.
A new survey conducted by the Public Policy Polling firm shows Strickland holding only a 44 percent to 42 percent lead with 14 percent undecided when asked about the potential race.
The PPP survey shows the pro-abortion governor with a narrow 43-42 percent approval-disapproval rating with 15 percent undecided.
Kasich has a similar 31 percent to 30 percent approval rating but has the potential to reach voters given that 39 percent are undecided. Many Ohio voters don’t know him because he served in the House and did not have an opportunity to connect with all state residents.
The survey also found Strickland receives just a 70 percent approval rating from Democrats, a drop from 62 percent in the most recent PPP survey, and Republican disapproval of his performance has risen from 59 percent earlier this year to 72 percent.
In June of last year, Strickland upset pro-life Ohio residents by using his line-item veto to axe the section of the $1.3 billion funding bill banning state funds for cloning human beings.
Mike Gonidakis, the director of Ohio Right to Life, told LifeNews.com at the time, “By vetoing a ban on using taxpayer funds for human cloning, Ted Strickland has demonstrated that he supports treating human life as a commodity."
"Most Ohioans don’t share Governor Strickland’s cavalier disregard for the value of human life and they should not be forced to pay for its creation, exploitation and destruction in cloning research,” Gonidakis said.
In March 2007, Strickland feuded with pro-life advocates over his budget proposal that eliminated the $500,000 the state normally spends annually on encouraging kids to practice abstinence.
The governor said he would not apply for any more federal funds for abstinence education for future budgets.
In February 2007, Strickland would not fight to save an Ohio law that protects women from the dangerous RU 486 abortion drug which has killed seven women in the United States and injured more than a thousand more. With little fanfare, Strickland quietly dropped a legal effort to salvage a law that puts safety limits on the drug.
The Ohio state legislature previously approved a bill to bring the use of the abortion pill in Ohio in line with Food and Drug Administration guidelines.
During his tenure in Congress, Strickland had a strong pro-abortion voting record while Kasich compiled a strongly pro-life record.
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