Gubernatorial candidate Ed FitzGerald stopped by Athens Thursday
Gubernatorial candidate Ed FitzGerald stopped by Athens Thursday to rally fellow Democrats in the county and to receive a boost in support in this last leg of his campaign.
The event, which took place at the American Legion building, 520 West Union Street, was a fundraiser for the Athens County Democratic Party and an opportunity to remind attendees to vote in the Nov. 4 midterm election.
Almost 130 people showed up to see FitzGerald — who hopes to unseat Republican Gov. John Kasich — speak, including State Sen. Lou Gentile, D-Steubenville and State Rep. Debbie Phillips, D-Albany.
Local officials and hopefuls in attendance included Athens city auditor Kathy Hecht, who is running for county auditor against Republican incumbent Jill Thompson; Athens County Common Pleas Court judge candidate Herman Carson, who’s pinned against incumbent George McCarthy and several city council members. Tickets for the event costed $25.
A handful of members of the Ohio University College Republicans clashed with the liberal fanfare by picketing in front of the hall before FitzGerald arrived. One protester’s sign asked “Who drove you here?” while another read, “Ed knows foreign affairs.”
Over the summer, FitzGerald came under scrutiny for a run-in with police in Northeast Ohio at about 4:30 a.m. two years ago while he was found alone in a car with a woman — not his wife — from an Irish delegation. FitzGerald has been adamant that there was no wrongdoing on his part and didn’t address the controversy Thursday night.
In his speech, FitzGerald emphasized his focus on job growth and alleged that Kasich’s policies have hurt education in the state.
Athens County Democratic Party Chair Alan Trout was disappointed student Republicans turned out to protest the speech.
“It’s a shame that the college Republicans saw fit to come out here and protest,” Trout said. “I cannot remember a time that we ever did that to them.”
Anna Lippincott, vice president of the College Republicans and a junior studying journalism and political science, said she hasn’t felt threatened at all by FitzGerald’s campaign, pointing to recent polls that had the Republican candidate, John Kasich, up by 30 points.
“I would hardly even call it a protest,” she said. “We just hope Ed FitzGerald sees some of these signs and gets a laugh out of them.”
Lippincott said that she felt confident in the actions Kasich has already taken as governor.
“He is doing really good things to bring jobs to Ohio and to make Ohio work,” she said.
FitzGerald arrived about twenty minutes after the dinner began and was greeted with a standing ovation.
“Athens is a great place,” said FitzGerald, who also spoke at the last Democratic Party dinner in the spring. “It’s got a great community spirit and a great civic spirit.
“People here take government seriously and they take politics seriously.”
Phillips, who is running against Washington County Republican Yolan Dennis, said that the results of the election would hinge on who came out to vote.
“I hope I’ll be able to fight the fight on your behalf,” she said “The whole game this year for getting some of our state offices back is voter turnout.”
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