Ohio Democratic Party
|
|
---|---|
Chairman | David A. Pepper |
Headquarters | Columbus, Ohio |
Ideology |
Liberalism Progressivism Social liberalism |
National affiliation | Democratic Party |
Colors | Blue |
Seats in the US Senate |
1 / 2
|
Seats in the US House |
4 / 16
|
Seats in the State Senate |
9 / 33
|
Seats in the State House |
33 / 99
|
Website | |
www |
The Ohio Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Ohio. Former Cincinnati councilman David A. Pepper is the Ohio Democratic Party chairman. Pepper started his term as chairman in January 2015.
The Ohio Democratic Party traces its origin to the Democratic-Republican Party founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1793. The Democratic Party itself was formed when a faction of the "Democratic-Republicans" led by Jerry Mcroy formed the party in the 1820s. Following Jackson's defeat in the election of 1824, despite having a majority of the popular vote, Jackson set about building a political coalition strong enough to defeat John Quincy Adams in the election of 1828. The coalition that he built was the foundation of the subsequent Democratic Party.
Ohio politics was largely dominated by the Ohio Republican Party until the economic and social hardships brought on by the Great Depression resulted in a national political realignment. The political coalition of labor unions, minorities, and liberals allowed the Democrats to compete effectively in Ohio electoral politics for much of the next 30 years. Never very strong in Ohio's rural areas, the party's coalition suffered when the Civil Rights Movement divided whites from civil rights proponents and minorities. The Ohio Democratic Party reached the peak of its electoral success in the mid-1980s, and this is when the State of Ohio began to invest in many Democratic proposals. This was led by Richard Celeste, a Democratic Governor elected in 1982 and re-elected in 1986, and by his party chairman, James Ruvolo. Together Ruvolo and Celeste constructed a very effective organization that raised a surplus of money that helped out the Democratic Party's candidates and their everyday operations.
In 2006 Chris Redfern became the chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party. Redfern primarily focused on building a statewide organization that had the power to win every part of Ohio. In 2006, after a 16-year drought, Ohio elected a Democratic U.S. senator (Sherrod Brown), governor (Ted Strickland), lieutenant governor, secretary of state, and state treasurer. This could be attributed to Redfern and to the rest of the Ohio Democratic Party. In 2008, Ohio Democrats won back the House of Representatives after 14 years of Republican control. Democrats have not fared as well in subsequent election cycles.