Tomorrow is primary day for the 2015 Columbus Mayoral Race.  This race will be a bit different than previous ones, due to changes in the City Charter approved by voters since the last mayoral race in 2011.  This mayoral race will be using a nonpartisan primary system, in which the top two finishers will face each other in the November general election (even if they are from the same party).

 

Four candidates are running in the primary are:

 

- (D) Andrew Ginther, Columbus City Council President

- (D) Zach Scott, Franklin County Sheriff

- (D) James Ragland, Development Director of Cristo Rey High School

- ® Terry Boyd, former president of the Columbus Board of Education

 

Ginther is the most well-known and prominent of the four candidates.  In addition to currently being president of City Council (a position that the outgoing mayor previously held), he also received Mayor Coleman’s endorsement in this primary.

 

Scott has some name recognition as the Franklin County Sheriff, but no political experience outside of law enforcement.  Ragland has no name recognition prior to this run, but could be an intriguing "outsider" candidate.  Boyd has some name recognition from his previous time on the Board of Education and is the lone Republican in the primary.

Here are articles about, and interviews with, each primary candidate:

 

Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott To Run For Columbus Mayor

Posted: Nov 26, 2014 12:04 PM EST

By: Alex Mazer, Multimedia Content Producer

 

County Sheriff’s Zach Scott announced Wednesday that he intends to run for the Office of Mayor of Columbus in 2015.

 

MORE: http://www.nbc4i.com/story/27488658/franklin-county-sheriff-zach-scott-to-run-for-columbus-mayor

 

 

Interview: Sheriff Zach Scott, Candidate for Mayor

February 1, 2015 11:03 am - Jesse Bethea

 

Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott was the first to announce his candidacy for Columbus mayor late last year after current Mayor Michael Coleman announced he would not run for reelection.  On Saturday, Scott opened his new campaign headquarters on East 5th Avenue.  While there, he agreed to talk at length with Columbus Underground about his campaign and the future he envisions for the city if he is elected.

 

MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/interview-sheriff-zach-scott-candidate-for-mayor-jb1

Council President Ginther Enters the Race for Columbus Mayor

December 10, 2014 4:51 pm – Jesse Bethea

 

Columbus City Council President Andrew Ginther announced today that he is running to succeed Mayor Michael Coleman as Coleman completes his time in office.  It’s long been expected that the 39-year-old Democrat intended to follow Coleman in office and Ginther’s opportunity to do so came when Coleman announced last month that he would not seek a fifth term.

 

MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/council-president-ginther-enters-the-race-for-columbus-mayor-jb1

 

 

Interview: Andrew Ginther, Candidate for Mayor

April 24, 2015 10:24 am – Jesse Bethea

 

With the Columbus primary election approaching on May 5, Columbus Underground has wrapped up a series of interviews with each candidate for mayor.  Current City Council President Andrew Ginther was the last candidate to be interviewed, agreeing to sit down and talk with CU at his German Village campaign headquarters on Thursday.

 

MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/interview-andrew-ginther-candidate-for-mayor-jb1

 

Terry Boyd Announced as GOP Candidate for Mayor

January 17, 2015 11:26 am – Jesse Bethea

 

On Thursday, the Franklin County Republican Party announced Terry Boyd, former president of the Columbus Board of Education, as their candidate for Columbus mayor in the May primary.  The two candidates with the most votes in that primary will run against each other in the general election.

 

Columbus Underground was able to speak with Boyd on Friday afternoon about what he expects from the campaign and what separates his vision for Columbus from those of his opponents.

 

MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/terry-boyd-announced-as-gop-candidate-for-mayor-jb1

 

 

Boyd: “I Want to Do Something Significant For Columbus”

Updated: Thursday, March 12, 2015 | Katelyn Murphy

 

Next Wednesday, ABC 6 will be hosting a special mayoral debate. Senior reporter Chris Vanocur has spent his week interviewing all the candidates. Dr. Terry Boyd defined himself this way: “Yes, I am a Republican, but before I am a Republican, I am an African American. I am a Christian.”

 

MORE: http://www.abc6onyourside.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/Boyd-quot-I-Want-to-Do-Something-Significant-For-Columbus-quot-102185.shtml#.VQI6oinqY20

James Ragland Enters Race for Columbus Mayor

January 19, 2015 6:57 pm – Walker Evans

 

The race to replace outgoing Mayor Michael B. Coleman just got another contender with news that James Ragland has officially announced his candidacy for the position. Ragland currently serves as Development Director at the Cristo Rey High School, and has previously held positions with the University District Organization, the State Central Committee for the Ohio Democratic Party, and as a Legislative Aide at Columbus City Council.

 

MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/james-ragland-enters-race-for-columbus-mayor

 

 

Interview: James Ragland, Candidate for Mayor

March 3, 2015 9:50 am – Jesse Bethea

 

Earlier this month, mayoral candidate James Ragland was almost kicked off the ballot by the Franklin County Board of Elections after questions emerged over whether one of his five-member nominating committee lived in Columbus.  Those concerns were quickly dismissed and Ragland is now firmly on the ballot for the nonpartisan primary in May.

 

Ragland agreed to sit down for an interview with Columbus Underground Monday morning at his offices on East Long Street, across from the Lincoln Theater.

 

MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/interview-james-ragland-candidate-for-mayor-jb1

And here are the four primary candidates for Mayor at WOSU's 'Columbus On The Record':

 

Primary Results from http://www.ohio-votes.com/link/666288/live-results-2015-general-election-results

 

Franklin County - City of Columbus Mayoral Primary -- 638 of 638 precincts reporting (100%)

 

Andrew J. Ginther [D]  23,644 - 52%

Zach Scott [D]              8,279 - 18%

Terry A. Boyd [R]          8,171 - 18%

James C. Ragland [D]    5,404 - 12%

 

Council President Andy Ginther easily advanced to the two-person November general election part of the 2015 Mayoral Race.  Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott finished second and will also advance to the general, if his 108-vote lead over Republican Terry Boyd holds up during the mandatory recount.  Last place finisher James Ragland has been eliminated.

What do you guys think of Ginther? I'm a Coleman fan and I'm disappointed we're losing him. Ginther says the right things but he just gives off this generic or maybe a bit inauthentic vibe to me. Overall though I think the city is pretty well-run and Ginther will more or less continue things as they have been.

I agree. Though I wouldn't have minded if Ragland was able to stay in the race.

 

Sheriff Zach has really good name recognition. If you think it's strange than he's running for mayor with no other political experience you have to understand that in Columbus it is traditional for the standing Sheriff to run for mayor.

What do you guys think of Ginther? I'm a Coleman fan and I'm disappointed we're losing him. Ginther says the right things but he just gives off this generic or maybe a bit inauthentic vibe to me. Overall though I think the city is pretty well-run and Ginther will more or less continue things as they have been.

 

Wouldn't disagree with anything you said there.  A Ginther administration might focus somewhat more on neighborhood vs. downtown projects than Coleman did.  But with so many downtown projects either completed or finishing up, a 5th Coleman term probably would have done the same.

Sheriff Zach has really good name recognition. If you think it's strange than he's running for mayor with no other political experience you have to understand that in Columbus it is traditional for the standing Sheriff to run for mayor.

 

Really?  When was the last time a Franklin County Sheriff ran for Columbus mayor?

Earl Smith usually ran, for one.

Earl Smith is a retired Sergeant with the Columbus Police Department who ran one time - in 2011 as the Republican's token opposition to Mayor Coleman.

This would be a reference to former Sheriff Earl O. Smith, who held office prior to the late Jim Karnes. I'm not sure if that Smith ran for mayor in the 1980s, but he was a colorful and eminently lampoonable figure.

Here's my take on the elections: https://urbansurfin.wordpress.com/2015/05/07/conservative-columbus-complacent-columbus/

interesting tidbit buried within that article: " Columbus is one of the largest U.S. cities in which no council members represent wards or other geographic districts? (Austin is the largest city with all council members serving at-large.) Would wards lead to more community-based candidates and competitive races? Would they lead to more voter engagement?"

This would be a reference to former Sheriff Earl O. Smith, who held office prior to the late Jim Karnes. I'm not sure if that Smith ran for mayor in the 1980s, but he was a colorful and eminently lampoonable figure.

 

Lots of Earl Smith's around(!):  http://www.columbusunderground.com/get-to-know-mayoral-candidate-earl-w-smith-pt-1

^ That's the one Columbo was referring to.

Then of course there was Mayor Lashutka who also came to us from the Executive Branch.

interesting tidbit buried within that article: " Columbus is one of the largest U.S. cities in which no council members represent wards or other geographic districts? (Austin is the largest city with all council members serving at-large.) Would wards lead to more community-based candidates and competitive races? Would they lead to more voter engagement?"

 

There is a perception that city council/mayor's office is a clique. When one member retires, a new one is usually appointed, and then that person ends up winning their election next time with the support of all the other members. In any Columbus Dispatch article about city council, there are at least a few people in the comments complaining about the lack of a ward system.

 

They certainly have a point - minorities in the city get underrepresented - Republicans, or also people in very poor neighborhoods - because we get big city Democrats who have to try to be all things to all people. The flip side of this is that things have gone pretty well in CBUS throughout Coleman's years, it's hard to argue that they aren't effective. The city does have very strong neighborhood commissions/boards that act as the local liaison to city hall, such as the Clintonville Area Commission, Harrison West Society, University Area Commission. They often advise council on zoning changes, new developments, etc.

 

All that being said, the trend in large midwestern cities recently is for these municipal elections to be pretty uncompetitive. See Cleveland and Chicago, which both have wards and pretty large councils. Coleman is our Richard M. Daley and Ginther is our Rahm Emanuel.

What the new primary system also does is lock out Republicans if two well-known democrats run.

There is a perception that city council/mayor's office is a clique. When one member retires, a new one is usually appointed, and then that person ends up winning their election next time with the support of all the other members. In any Columbus Dispatch article about city council, there are at least a few people in the comments complaining about the lack of a ward system.

 

They certainly have a point - minorities in the city get underrepresented - Republicans, or also people in very poor neighborhoods - because we get big city Democrats who have to try to be all things to all people. The flip side of this is that things have gone pretty well in CBUS throughout Coleman's years, it's hard to argue that they aren't effective. The city does have very strong neighborhood commissions/boards that act as the local liaison to city hall, such as the Clintonville Area Commission, Harrison West Society, University Area Commission. They often advise council on zoning changes, new developments, etc.

 

I think this is a good assessment of things.

 

Yes, there is clearly a system in place where those in power are highly coordinated, both at governing in lock-step with one another and maintaining dynastic control of the city. But, like it or not, by and large that system works.

 

I will say though that I find it very interesting to read on UrbanOhio about the goings on in Cleveland and Cincinnati by comparison. Those cities have colorful characters, factions, arguments, debates, controversies, split votes, vetos, etc - all things completely non-existent (at least publicly) in Columbus city government. I actually can't remember the last non-unanimous council vote. (Maybe Charleta Tavares being a lone dissenter on something to do with dog parks?)

 

A best-case scenario IMO would be for one 'outsider' councilmember to be elected, in order to give some constructive criticism to the majority's groupthink, but not be in a position to really overturn the apple cart.

Actually, I like what so many smaller cities have -- a mix of ward and at-large council seats. Typically, four wards and three at-large seats. That encourages competitive seats and a voice for neighborhood interests, balanced with a citywide view.

 

I will say though that I find it very interesting to read on UrbanOhio about the goings on in Cleveland and Cincinnati by comparison. Those cities have colorful characters, factions, arguments, debates, controversies, split votes, vetos, etc - all things completely non-existent (at least publicly) in Columbus city government. I actually can't remember the last non-unanimous council vote. (Maybe Charleta Tavares being a lone dissenter on something to do with dog parks?)

 

 

Oh yes, BOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRINNNNNNNG

Actually, I like what so many smaller cities have -- a mix of ward and at-large council seats. Typically, four wards and three at-large seats. That encourages competitive seats and a voice for neighborhood interests, balanced with a citywide view.

 

Plus the at-large is a nice protection from gerrymandering.

Cincinnati has 9 at-large council seats. I wouldn't mind having 4 district seats and 5 at large seats that all serve 4 year terms but alternate when they are elected (all at-large seats one year and all district seats two years later).

Whenever someone complains that Columbus politics is too boring, I point out that Jim Traficant and Toronto Mayor Rob Ford were not boring.

 

Be careful what you wish for!

Uncounted votes mean Ginther’s opponent for mayor still up in air

By Lucas Sullivan, The Columbus Dispatch

Friday, May 15, 2015 - 7:10 AM

 

The Franklin County Board of Elections estimates that there are about 1,100 votes still uncounted in the Columbus mayoral primary, meaning Democrat Andrew J. Ginther’s opponent in the general election remains uncertain.  Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott, a Democrat, is leading Republican Terry Boyd, a Franklin University professor, 8,372 votes to 8,221, according to uncertified results.  The 151-vote margin makes it possible that Boyd could overtake Scott if enough uncounted votes break his way.

 

That would be a brutal defeat for Scott.  Up to the election, the sheriff thought he had a chance to hang with Ginther, who received 52 percent of all votes cast in the nonpartisan primary.  Boyd and Scott received about 18 percent each.  Scott outspent Boyd nearly 100 to 1, paying roughly $500,000 for TV, radio and billboard advertisements.

( . . . )

Provisional ballots are cast when there’s doubt about the voter’s eligibility because of things such as a recent change in address, an error with voter registration or an uncompleted absentee ballot.  State law requires absentee ballots received after the election and provisional votes to remain uncounted for 10 days. ... There are 401 uncounted absentee ballots and the rest are provisional, according to the elections board.

 

MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/05/15/ginthers-opponent-still-up-in-air.html

Whenever someone complains that Columbus politics is too boring, I point out that Jim Traficant and Toronto Mayor Rob Ford were not boring.

 

 

Neither was Reinhardt. He was fun and raised the profile of the City of Columbus with a bunch of money-losing events and flashiness. That flashiness faded to '90s grit under Lashutka.

Buck Rinehart was all flash and no substance.  We're just lucky that his numerous local scandals occurred during a pre-internet 24/7 news cycle era.

Rinehart was way before I got here, and all I know about him is from what the media said about him when he died, but he seemed like a pretty cool guy and a decently accomplished mayor. Obviously they were sugar coating things though, he just died after all.

 

They basically credited the Arena District to him on NBC4. How accurate is that?

It could be argued that Rinehart "set the stage" for the Arena District, because the City purchased the former Ohio Pen from the State during his administration.  But the Arena District master plan that we see built today was started in 1997, well after Rinehart left office in 1992.  And it was done using a public-private collaboration between Nationwide and the Lashutka administration.  This type of public-private collaborative process became a trademark of the Coleman administration in the 2000's and 2010's for the many downtown developments to follow.

 

It could be argued that this public-private collaborative process is the opposite of Rinehart's brash "taking credit for everything" style of governing.  Furthermore, for all of Rinehart's enthusiasm, his track record of accomplishing projects was woeful:

 

- City Center Mall:  Later closed down, demolished and redeveloped by others

- Trash Burning Power Plant:  Derided as the "cash burning power plant". Later closed down and demolished.

- New Downtown Police HQ Building:  Built for $28 million with numerous defects. Numerous repairs since 1991 until a major reconstruction of its façade was done in 2013.

 

And then there was Buck Rinehart's public and private embarrassments:

 

PUBLIC:  Holding a ceremonial demolition of the Ohio Pen with Rinehart at the controls of a wrecking ball:  A small corner of the Spring Street side was demolished during the ceremony.  Then the State reminded Rinehart that the City had not yet acquired ownership of the building.  The City actually had to repair the damage Rinehart caused before the property could be transferred!

 

PUBLIC:  Giving away the Brushstrokes in Flight sculpture by Roy Lichtenstein to the sister city of Genoa:  Turns out that the Mayor can't just give away city property to someone.  He needed the approval of City Council.  Which he did not get after it was found that the sculpture was worth about $500,000!

 

PRIVATE:  Sleeping with the babysitter of his children:  Reveled near the end of the final term as Mayor during his divorce proceedings!

 

PRIVATE:  Having an affair with a City Hall employee and promoting her to the head of a city division:  Also reveled during his divorce proceedings.  At least he ended up marrying her!

 

This is why I will continue to say that I have no problem with "boring leadership".  As long as Columbus leadership is effective, I don't care how boring they are!

Scott certified to oppose Ginther for mayor in November

By Rick Rouan, The Columbus Dispatch

Friday, May 22, 2015 - 4:39 PM

 

Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott will face City Council President Andrew J. Ginther in the November election to become Columbus’ next mayor.  The Franklin County Board of Elections certified its votes today, confirming unofficial totals that showed Scott edging Republican Terry Boyd for the second spot on the Nov. 3 ballot.

 

Scott had 8,648 votes to Boyd’s 8,510, a margin of 138 votes.  A gap of 113 votes would have triggered an automatic recount.  Ginther received about 52 percent of the primary vote.  Scott and Boyd each received about 18 percent.  James C. Ragland, a Democrat, received about 12 percent.

 

MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/05/22/Scott_certified_as_Gintherxs_opponent_in_November.html

Well Columbo, you may have spoken too soon on Columbus politics being boring. This could really shake things up. As for Redflex, I want my $98 back from Summit St back in August 2013.

 

City Council President Andy Ginther caught up in red-light camera bribe case

 

By Lucas Sullivan & Darrel Rowland

The Columbus Dispatch  •  Friday June 19, 2015 6:12 PM

 

A former chief executive officer of the red-light camera company Redflex has pleaded guilty to bribing Columbus elected officials - including Council President Andrew Ginther - through the Ohio Democratic Party to install the cameras and keep them operating in the city.

 

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/06/19/0619-ginther.html

^ MU2010, you broke it here before I got around to reading about this.  Very vigilant!  Here's the Business First take on it so far: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2015/06/19/former-exec-of-red-light-camera-vendor-pleads.html

 

Although, I still find this version of bribery to be kind of boring.  Redflex is said to have given money to a lobbyist, who then gave money to various entities, who then gave money to campaign funds (one of which was Ginther's).  It's not as dramatic as the Louisiana lawmaker who had bags of cash stashed in his office freezer!

 

But you're right about this Redflex case making the Ginther coronation (i.e. the 2015 mayoral race) a lot more interesting.  Ginther has already survived a brush with scandal during his time on the Columbus School Board.  Will this second scandal be worse and bring him down?  Or does he survive again?

 

Right now, I'm thinking he gets hurt, but not enough to scuttle his mayoral campaign.  I think there will need to be either more information that directly ties Ginther to Redflex, or something more dramatic that really outrages the average voter to derail Ginther.

Anyone who thought that these initial Redflex allegations would drive Andy Ginther from the mayoral race (as his primary opponent Sheriff Zach Scott called for) got their answer yesterday:

 

http://nbc4i.com/2015/06/22/ginther-again-denies-receiving-money-from-redflex/

 

http://www.columbusunderground.com/ginther-i-am-not-a-target-of-this-investigation

Who are you guys voting for? I think I'm going with the sheriff. I don't trust Ginther.

I wanted Ragland

I'm going with Ginther. "Better the devil you know," as they say.

 

IMO Scott just has too much potential to come in and be a Columbus version of John Cranley.

 

Do you mean John Cranley as in he'll be anti-urban or John Cranley as in he'll just be a jerk?

Do you mean John Cranley as in he'll be anti-urban or John Cranley as in he'll just be a jerk?

 

A little of both.

 

Similar to Cranley, Scott's a democrat but he's also hoping to appeal enough to Republicans to win by combining their votes with disgruntled D's. He's been playing the old "Downtown" vs "the Neighborhoods" BS and saying that we don't need any more development there. He wants to roll back the tax incentives offered by the city for new housing and jobs, which have been so successful since 2002 - and do this at a time when Downtown is really not yet ready to walk/run on its own. These are still critically important tools for developers, as Downtown Columbus is improving rapidly but still has a ways to go.

 

Scott's also voiced skepticism with the cost and need of an upgraded mass transit system. Going along with his attempted appeal to R's, he looks to be basically saying "we're spending too much money as it is, and we don't need/can't afford big investments." This is a fatal flaw IMO because the next mayor will have this as one of his biggest opportunities and challenges. A trio of studies/planning programs are coming together that will likely decide for the foreseeable future whether or not Columbus will be getting rail anytime in the next few decades - MORPC insight2050, Connect Columbus, and COTA NextGen.

 

In order for those initiatives to succeed there will need to be strong and united support among local government and business leaders. Ginther (for better or worse) is completely in tune with these interests, while Scott is consistently in conflict with them. His relationships with City Councilmembers, Franklin County Commissioners (except for Paula Brooks), local and statewide Democrats, and business bigwigs (Wexner, Wolfe, Nationwide, Huntington, etc) are either very poor and even borderline hostile, or non-existent.

 

Also similar to Cranley, I could easily see him making a point of breaking with the previous administration on many things not because it's necessary or helpful, but just because he can. Minor league "corruption" and recent mild scandals aside, I think Coleman et al have done a pretty fantastic job over the past decade plus. IMO it's pretty critical nothing messes that up now.

 

TL;DR - I don't particularly trust Ginther, but I trust Scott a whole lot less. I think Scott would be more of a jerk and more anti-urban than the other way around.

Thanks for your post, very good points. I agree with you that Coleman has been great and I have always liked him. Unfortunately this RedFlex stuff and the soft bribe added to price when he sold his house have left a sour taste in my mouth over the past few months, and I was thinking of voting for the Sheriff as a referendum on that.

 

You are probably right that there is too much to lose. Maybe I'll just hold my nose and vote Ginther. Looks like the Dispatch endoresed him the other day.

 

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/editorials/2015/10/04/1-for-mayor.html

Also similar to Cranley, I could easily see him making a point of breaking with the previous administration on many things not because it's necessary or helpful, but just because he can. Minor league "corruption" and recent mild scandals aside, I think Coleman et al have done a pretty fantastic job over the past decade plus. IMO it's pretty critical nothing messes that up now.

 

TL;DR - I don't particularly trust Ginther, but I trust Scott a whole lot less. I think Scott would be more of a jerk and more anti-urban than the other way around.

 

Thanks for this analysis. My inclination was to go with "none of the above" and leave that part of the ballot blank. I will hold my nose and vote for Ginther, choosing "bad" over "worse."

I liked casey's analysis posted above.  I pretty much agree with what he said, so I'll just add this personal observation:

 

- If you like the direction that Mayor Coleman is taking Columbus -- Vote Ginther

 

- If you don't like the direction Mayor Coleman is taking Columbus -- Vote Scott

Here's some mayoral election news from the past week:

 

- Former Candidate James Ragland Announces Support for Ginther Mayoral Campaign:  http://www.columbusunderground.com/james-ragland-andrew-ginther

 

- Ginther to Announce Vindication Today in Redflex Investigation:  http://www.columbusunderground.com/ginther-to-announce-vindication-today-in-redflex-investigation

 

- Redflex Lobbyist John Raphael Takes Full Responsibility in Plea Agreement:  http://www.columbusunderground.com/redflex-lobbyist-john-raphael-takes-full-responsibility-in-plea-agreement

Mayoral Candidates Share Big Ideas with Columbus Underground:  http://www.columbusunderground.com/columbus-mayor-election-2015

 

The above link has a written Q & A with both candidates on eight major city issues, plus videos of the entire sit-down interviews with both candidates.

So Red Light Camera non-committal-to-rail-transit Ginther beat DINO John Cranley-technique-utilizing Sheriff Zach. I wrote in Ragland.

Andrew Ginther Wins Election to Become Next Mayor of Columbus

By Walker Evans, Columbus Underground

November 3, 2015 - 11:55 pm

 

For the first time since 1999, voters have selected a new mayor of the City of Columbus.  Andrew Ginther sailed to victory over opponent Zach Scott, declaring his victory on stage at the Franklin County Democratic Party election event tonight.  With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Ginther retained an 18 point lead over Scott — 59 percent to 41 percent.

( . . . )

Ginther acknowledged his opponent Zach Scott, who he said conceded earlier in the evening.  Ginther will take office on January 1, 2016.

 

MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/andrew-ginther-wins-election-to-become-next-mayor-of-columbus

So Red Light Camera non-committal-to-rail-transit Ginther beat DINO John Cranley-technique-utilizing Sheriff Zach. I wrote in Ragland.

 

Red Light Camera:  Sure.

Non-committal-to-rail-transit:  Not if you read his answer to CU's Future of Transportation question from http://www.columbusunderground.com/columbus-mayor-election-2015:

 

Andrew Ginther: “We’re the largest city in the country without a multi-modal mass transit system, and we’re expecting another 500,000 people in the region over the next 35 years.  That’s a 25 percent increase in our population, and based on the current infrastructure, it would put us at a huge competitive disadvantage with respect to drawing the young and talented, and with respect to major employers.  I believe it’s in our best interest with regard to economic security and protecting the quality of life we have in this city, that we commit to the long term development of a multi-modal system.  That includes bikes, cars, trains, rail, streetcar — all of the above.”