• This will be a very low turnout race
• Name ID voters will not be motivated to vote
• The people who vote will be largely the most conservative and the most issues driven
• Those voters will be voting Pro-Life, Anti-Tax, Pro-Gun Rights, and Pro-Limited Government

Tom Brinkman not only supports those issues, but he has a proven track record of taking a leadership position on those issues.
I predict that Tom Brinkman will get that message out and that he will win.

Taking Heat
I'm taking heat for sending out candidate campaign information.
In the May 15 edition of my newsletter, I included a paragraph submitted by Steve Austin.
I have also forwarded one campaign e-mail each for Tom Brinkman, Bob McEwen, and David R. Smith.
No other campaign has submitted anything to me to send out.
If I get requests from other candidates to send out similar information, I will probably honor those requests.

(Avoiding "heat" is one of the reasons I generally prefer to stay out of primaries.)

Is a State Central Committeeman required to be fair to all candidates in a primary?
Long time readers of The Becker Report know that I am generally fair to all Republican candidates.
They also know that I usually find nice things to say about the candidates.
There is no requirement to be fair, balanced, or consistent.
It is my personal choice and not a requirement due to the office that I hold.

Has John Becker been working hard for only one candidate?
I am very strongly in favor of one particular candidate.
However, I often find myself defending and advocating for other candidates.
I signed petitions for several of the candidates and did not sign a petition for my favorite candidate.
Additionally, I gave names, phone numbers, and other information to every candidate who asked.
I have also introduced multiple candidates to multiple people.

While campaigning door-to-door, if the voter mentions or asks about another candidate, I mostly say positive things about that person.
Furthermore, I introduce myself as a volunteer and rarely give a business card or mention my office.
When I do, it is always in the context of "another hat that I wear."
While not required to do so, I prefer to separate my duties as a State Central Committeeman and a private citizen.

Since John Becker has a favorite candidate in this race, why doesn't he use The Becker Report as a campaign tool?
I've never claimed to be unbiased, but I enjoy working with all of the candidates.
They also seem to appreciate my magnanimity.
Part of my job is to disseminate information district wide.
Advocating and reporting on only one candidate would be a disservice to my readers.
I try to be friendly to everybody, and this newsletter is one way to do that.

Will John Becker endorse a candidate?
After I contacted the Ohio Republican Party, they verified that, as a State Central Committeeman, I am free to endorse and/or advocate for any candidate(s) in a primary.
However, I will not endorse in this race.
I'm concerned that some people may confuse my endorsement with that of the ORP.
The ORP has made no endorsement in this race.
And neither has Rob Portman.
Just for the record, I intend to support whoever wins this primary.

Endorsements
All eleven candidates were asked to let me know what organizations are endorsing them.
I specified that I would not list any personal endorsements because they are too numerous (and sometimes questionable).
If they did not respond, I looked on their web sites.

Steve Austin - None that I could find
Tom Bemmes - None that I could find

Tom Brinkman

• Cincinnati Right to Life PAC
• Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST) Candidate PAC
• Family First PAC
• Gun Owners of America (Political Victory Fund)
• Liberty PAC
• Live Free or Die PAC
• National Pro-Life Alliance PAC
• National Right to Work PAC
• Ohio Pro-Life PAC
• Ohio Taxpayer's Association PAC
• Pro-Family Network PAC

• Cincinnati Right to Life PAC
• Family First PAC

• Cincinnati Right to Life, PAC
• Clermont County Republican Party
• Ohio Small Business, PAC
• Ohio Taxpayer's Association PAC

1. The House Bank, at that time, was not computerized and relied on the original pencil and ledger system of the 1800s
2. Although the deposits were submitted, the clerk didn't seem to think that it was important to log them into the ledger before logging in the cleared checks
3. In the past, nobody cared that accounts were technically "overdrawn"
4. The least wealthy members did not keep large balances and were therefore the most vulnerable to ledger entry timing issues
5. The media smelled blood and the rest is history

1. A balanced, statewide target strategy is more effective
2. Focusing on turnout paid off
3. High turnout does not always favor Democrats
4. Investing in voter registration paid off
5. Outsourcing political programs, such as voter registration and turnout, to '527' groups is risky and potentially unreliable
6. Ohio's urban counties are losing population, while the exurban and rural counties are gaining
7. The battle for votes in Ohio is shifting to the exurban counties surrounding the metropolitan areas
8. Build an effective statewide organization down to the grassroots level
9. Practice makes perfect

• The Ohio Democrat Party is hiring fulltime regional staff
• America Coming Together (ACT) has established a permanent HQ
• Campaigns will no longer be seven months. They will now be four years.