MOUNT VERNON — Beth Lear and Louise Valentine are vying for the 61st District House seat in the Nov. 8 general election.
The 61st District includes parts of Knox and Delaware counties. Rep. Shawn Stevens was appointed to replace former 61st District House Rep. Rick Carfagna when the latter stepped down earlier this year to take a job with the Ohio Chamber of Commerce.
Then, Stevens lost to Lear in the Republican primary in August.
Valentine, a Democrat and Genoa Township resident, currently works for the non-profit LEAD Ohio, an organization that helps individuals run for an elected position. Here is a link to her campaign page.
“The sole reason I’m running is to be the reasonable voice for the constituents I’m serving,” Valentine said. “I’m bringing common sense to the table.
“We’ve continued to have extreme ideology at the state house and that’s not what people are hoping for.”
Lear, a Republican, did not respond to Knox Pages’ repeated requests for comment on her candidacy. Here is a link to her campaign page.
Valentine acknowledges if she wins she would be diving into a red sea, noting how Ohio has trended Republican of late. She believes she can “bring a different perspective and bring a different voice to the table.”
“I think we need reasonable voices in the state legislature, not radical voices, who are willing to reach across the aisle to get things done,” she said.
“A lot of the civility has been lost,” Valentine said.
This follows one of Valentine’s beliefs on her website: ensure teachers can teach and students can learn an honest history of the state and country.
Valentine on police funding
Valentine says funding is one way law enforcement needs supported.
“They need the funding to be able to have enough officers to have the right type of tools and resources,” she said.
Valentine said she went on a ride-along with law enforcement in 2018 when she ran for state senate.
“The computers the officers were using looked like 15 years ago in the car. The officers were explaining it takes a very long time for us to do the paperwork, the systems are quite antiquated,” she said.
Valentine said she wants to add funding for PTSD services in police contracts, noting officers see “some crazy stuff.”
In Feburary 2020, the Ohio House passed House Bill 308, which allows peace officers, firefighters, and emergency medical workers who have PTSD due to employment to qualify for compensation and benefits whether or not they already suffer from an accompanying injury.
“They’re not social workers,” Valentine said. “They’re not therapists. It’s doing a disservice to the community and others.”
Valentine suggested having social workers go with police on calls involving mental health.
Valentine said there has been a rallying cry from the right for a couple of years that all Democrats want to do is defund the police.
“We need the police,” she said. “I have never ever been on the defund the police train. Are there opportunities to make our police better? One hundred percent.
“Defunding them is not going to solve the problem.”
Valentine on taxes
Valentine’s idea on taxes is “not wanting to spend money on something that doesn’t make sense.”
“When it comes to effective tax policy, look at the budget and take a look at this is the pot of money — are we spending this money the best way possible? If we’re throwing money at a problem without actually getting at the root cause of the problem, that’s not efficient,” she said.
The root problem, in Valentine’s words, is folks aren’t making enough in wages.
“If we’re throwing money at the food banks that’s great, but we really need to raise the minimum wage so folks can afford food and rent,” the democratic candidate said. “What makes the most sense long-term to fix these problems?”
The sole reason why Valentine is running, she said, is to be a reasonable voice for the constituents she’s serving.
