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In a time when public trust often feels in short supply, it can be easy to become cynical about public service. We see political dysfunction and partisan gridlock. Yet despite all of that, there are still people who answer a simple calling: service above self. Service above self means putting the needs of others ahead of personal convenience.

Every election cycle, we rediscover our frustration with the two-party system. Republicans complain the Republican Party isn't conservative enough. Democrats complain the Democratic Party isn't progressive enough. Independents complain neither party represents them. Then comes: We need a third party. It's an appealing idea. More choices sound better than fewer choices. Competition is supposed to improve outcomes. Why should politics be any different? Americans certainly like

I've never met a beaver who cared much about trademarks. Beavers are generally busy building dams, chewing wood and minding their own business. They don't spend a lot of time worrying about intellectual property law. Big corporations, however, are a different story. That brings us to the legal showdown involving Buc-ee's, the Texas travel center giant known for its enormous convenience stores, pristine restrooms, beef jerky and smiling cartoon beaver. The company is suing Bea

When voters send someone to Congress, they are not electing a spokesperson for a president. They are electing a representative. This distinction is worth remembering as U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson once again finds himself at odds with President Donald Trump and Republican leadership over federal spending.

The Buckeye state is experiencing something we have not seen in decades: a full-scale taxpayer revolt. Across Ohio, homeowners are opening their property tax bills and asking a simple question: How much longer can this continue? Personally, my property value went up 10 percent, and I just experienced voters passing one of the largest 37 year school bond levy beginning in 2027.

Last week, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed House Bill 20, commonly known as the "Halo Law." The legislation creates a 15-foot safety zone around first responders who are actively performing their duties and increases penalties for those who interfere with emergency operations. The law takes effect in October. Some praised the law as a long-overdue protection for police officers, firefighters, EMTs, paramedics and probation officers. Others claimed it was an attack on fre

If you're looking for certainty in Ohio politics, this isn't the year. Despite Ohio's Republican past decade of success, both statewide races remain remarkably competitive heading into the fall campaign season. According to the RealClearPolling average, Democrat Amy Acton holds a narrow 47.3% to 47.0% edge over Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in the race for governor. The U.S. Senate contest is even tighter, with former Sen. Sherrod Brown leading incumbent Sen. Jon Husted b

The U.S. Supreme Court issued one of the most significant constitutional rulings in decades this week, rejecting President Donald Trump's effort to limit birthright citizenship and reaffirming children born on American soil are citizens of the United States regardless of their parents' immigration status. This week, in a 6-3 decision, the high court struck down Trump's executive order and reaffirmed a principle that has been part of American law for more than a century. Ch

If you've lived anywhere near Springfield over the past few years, the city has become the center of a national immigration debate. This week, the U.S. Supreme Court weighed in, allowing the Trump administration to move forward with ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for hundreds of thousands of Haitians and others who have been living and working in the United States under a program originally intended to be temporary.

Last year, 157 Ohioans lost their lives in domestic violence-related incidents making it the highest number ever recorded by the Ohio Domestic Violence Network. Ohio cannot prevent every act of domestic violence. However, lawmakers have an opportunity to provide families with another tool to protect themselves. A bipartisan bill pending in the Ohio General Assembly, House Bill 846, would create a registry for repeat domestic violence offenders. The legislation is spons

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s announcement that he now supports abolishing the death penalty marks one of the most significant reversals of his long public career. DeWine, a former Greene County prosecutor and one of the architects of Ohio’s modern death penalty law, says he no longer believes capital punishment deters murder. He also points to the practical difficulties Ohio has faced in carrying out executions and the lengthy appeals process that often stretches for decades.

America’s student loan crisis is no longer just a problem for recent college graduates. It has become an economic issue affecting families, employers and communities across the country.

Most Ohio voters can name the president. Many can name the governor. Some may even know their mayor. Ask who controls property tax assessments, oversees the county jail, maintains local roads or manages election operations, and most residents would draw a blank.

For the past few years, Republicans successfully campaigned on inflation, affordability and rising energy costs. In Ohio, those messages resonated with working families, suburban commuters and rural voters who spend more time on the road than much of the country. Now with fuel prices climbing again, Republicans risk facing the same economic frustration once used against Democrats.

Vivek Ramaswamy has opened one of the biggest fights in Ohio politics. Any serious debate about taxes, state spending or the size of government in Ohio eventually runs into Medicaid. The program has grown so large it now shapes nearly every major budget discussion in Columbus.

Jury duty still matters. It may matter more today than it has in decades. At a time when trust in nearly every American institution is declining, jury service remains one of the few ways ordinary citizens directly participate in government.

Tuesday night answered who is driving politics in Southwest Ohio and who is not. Primary elections are not about broad consensus. Across the region, the electorate that showed up was smaller, more engaged and more ideologically sorted than the general electorate that will appear in November. At the top of the Republican ticket, Vivek Ramaswamy secured the nomination for governor with a campaign reflecting the current identity of the party: disciplined, message-driven and clo

The biggest decisions Ohio voters will make Tuesday might be the ones they know the least about. While attention will focus on the high-profile races at the top of the primary ballot, the contests that could have the most lasting impact are further down — judicial elections that will shape how laws are interpreted across the state for years to come. Two seats on the Supreme Court of Ohio are on the ballot this year. Though primary elections often receive little attention, thi

Election season often feels dominated by national headlines and statewide races. Meanwhile, the offices most directly affecting your day-to-day life are often ignored or unrealized. County commissioners are a huge example. The positions do not generate headlines, but they control a lot of local tax dollars, what gets built in your community and how efficiently county government operates. Roads, public safety funding, development decisions and even how aggressively local gover

Every spring during primary season, most attention goes to recognizable races like Governor, Congress, the Statehouse. Campaign ads fill the airwaves, mailers stack up in the mail and it’s easy to feel these are the only offices up for election. If you’ve ever worked your way to the bottom of a primary ballot, you’ve probably seen something less familiar: candidates for state and county central committees. It’s not surprising many voters skip those races. In most cases the na