It's an outrage Mike DeWine won't debate first woman nominated for Ohio governor| Opinion

Emily Quick Schriver is CEO of The Matriots, an Ohio nonpartisan political organization, www.matriotsohio.com.

Across the U.S., candidates for governor are holding debates. The debate is a hallmark of democracy. For U.S. citizens, it was codified in the very First Amendment of the Constitution. For elected offices, it was normalized in early presidential elections. We expect our executives to follow this democratic standard.

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As Jen Miller of the League of Women Voters of Ohio told Axios last week: “Informed voters are the engine of our representative democracy . . . debates are a key way that voters come to decide who they will vote for.”

Yet, we aren’t getting debates in Ohio. And we demand it. A recent USA TODAY Network Ohio/Suffolk University poll revealed that 84% of Ohioans want this debate.

Eighty-four percent.

If our candidates can’t be convinced to do what 84% of us want, how can they represent us?

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It is critical for candidates to compare their positions on key issues of concern. Yet, not in Ohio. Not for Ohioans.

Democratic Ohio governor candidate Nan Whaley has asked—repeatedly—for a debate with incumbent Mike DeWine, a Republican.

Debate is an Ohio tradition that DeWine embraced until now.

No debate is scheduled. As the Oct. 12 start of early voting gets closer, the likelihood of a debate dwindles. This is unfair to all Ohioans, and especially unfair to Ohio’s women.

First, Ohio’s gubernatorial candidates debate.

It’s what they do.

In the past 40 years, all but one set of candidates have debated for the seat. Even when there was an incumbent governor. In fact, Mike DeWine and Richard Cordray debated twice in 2018. However, this is the first time Ohio has a woman on the ballot as a major-party candidate for governor. Now that a woman is running for office, debate appears to be off the table.

Second, many women voters are undecided.

Ohio women deserve a debate.

A Suffolk University poll indicated that 65% of Ohio’s women were either unhappy with or unsure of the direction Ohio is currently going.

Women are not a monolith. We deserve the opportunity to understand where each candidate stands on reproductive health (including abortion), economic empowerment, crime reduction, healthcare, and a host of other issues.

Pundit guesses on these positions could be incorrect and a debate shows that the candidates care to explain their stance. Ohio’s women must hear all sides of the story.

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Debates are happening all around the nation. Why not in Ohio?

Finally, contentious candidates all over the U.S. are able to agree to styles of debate, including town-hall forums. Key concepts include independent moderators, non-partisan or bipartisan review of the questions, and a broad list of topics of interest to all Ohioans. If we can’t agree on the structure of a conversation, how can we ever find ways to agree on the content of our policy?

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In democracies, candidates inform voters of their ideas, plans, and hopes. Ohioans are demanding our candidates honor our democracy . . . and debate.

Emily Quick Schriver is CEO of The Matriots, an Ohio nonpartisan political organization, www.matriotsohio.com.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Opinion: Why won't Mike DeWine debate Nan Whaley?