4 months ago
COLUMBUS, Ohio—When Gov. Mike DeWine was asked by reporters past period astir his plans for his last twelvemonth arsenic governor, he whipped retired what looked for illustration a mini timepiece radio.
It was a countdown clock, showing nan number of days, hours, minutes, and seconds that nan term-limited Greene County Republican has near arsenic governor. DeWine said he was fixed nan timepiece by erstwhile Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who used a akin clock during his past twelvemonth successful office.
“So, we attack nan past twelvemonth arsenic we’ve approached everything -- pinch a awesome consciousness of urgency,” DeWine said. “That’s what I look astatine each greeting erstwhile I get up.”
At nan aforesaid time, some DeWine and others successful his orbit bespeak that nan politician will walk his last twelvemonth successful agency – besides expected to beryllium nan last twelvemonth of nan 78-year-old’s astir five-decade-long governmental profession – moving to burnish his governmental bequest much done shoring up his existing accomplishments than introducing a crescendo of caller initiatives and governmental lines successful nan sand.
“Our attraction is going to stay beautiful overmuch what it’s been, and that’s chiefly connected nan early successful Ohio,” DeWine said. “And nan early is our kids.”
That includes moving to grow and fortify DeWine’s existing efforts to amended puerility literacy, thief kids get glasses, and trim postulation deaths and injuries.
“The inclination successful authorities and authorities is you spell do it, and past you move distant from it,” DeWine said. “But what I’ve learned is that you person to thrust this worldly home, aliases it won’t happen.”
That doesn’t mean, however, that location will beryllium thing caller successful DeWine’s schedule for 2026.
For example, the politician will apt make a long-awaited announcement this month expressing his individual guidance to Ohio’s decease punishment – though it remains to beryllium seen what argumentation aliases ineligible changes, if any, he mightiness activity arsenic a consequence of specified a declaration.
Literacy programs
DeWine said he plans to proceed his efforts to thief Ohio schoolkids to study to read.
In particular, nan politician said he will “really, really, really attraction on” continuing to beforehand a phonics-based literacy school method called nan “science of reading.”
The politician hasn’t conscionable poured money into training Ohio teachers successful nan “science of reading” -- he successfully pushed for a law banning schools from utilizing replacement methods of literacy training, which DeWine, citing research, says are discredited.
“What we’re doing successful nan past twelvemonth (of DeWine’s word arsenic governor) is to proceed to thrust that home,” nan politician said.
Another privilege will beryllium to proceed nan state’s support of nan Dolly Parton Imagination Library. The nationalist nonprofit, founded by its namesake state euphony superstar, now sends a free book each period to 62% of each kids successful Ohio nether property 5, according to First Lady Fran DeWine, nan constituent personification for nan inaugural successful Ohio.
The costs of each book is divided betwixt nan authorities and a section partner (which tin see section governments aliases nonprofits).
“We’re number 1 successful nan state arsenic acold arsenic our (Imagination Library) program,” Fran DeWine told reporters. “And my situation now is to make this sustainable.”
DeWine said his management will proceed to beforehand reference successful different ways. For example, nan politician said, he’s asked each authorities furniture agency to return immoderate benignant of action to promote reading, specified arsenic opening much “storybook trails” successful authorities parks and building reference nooks successful family areas of authorities prisons.
Children’s imagination programme
DeWine said he wants to walk nan adjacent twelvemonth nurturing a caller authorities inaugural called OhioSEE, which will connection broad oculus exams and glasses, arsenic needed, to an estimated 14,000 kids successful 15 Ohio counties pinch a poorer organization and/or deficiency of adjacent imagination attraction providers.
While DeWine initially sought $50 cardinal for nan programme complete nan adjacent 2 years, lawmakers ended up appropriating $10 cardinal for it successful nan caller authorities budget.
DeWine said 1 of his 2026 goals is to show really successful and cost-effective nan caller programme is “so that erstwhile we time off office, it will beryllium embedded, and nan adjacent politician will want ...not only proceed it, but to grow it to each 88 counties.”
Stricter seat-belt rules
For years, DeWine has urged authorities lawmakers to walk authorities allowing rule enforcement to propulsion complete motorists solely for not wearing a spot belt.
Right now, Ohio is 1 of 14 states to person a “secondary” seat-belt law, meaning that officers tin summons group for not wearing spot belts only aft pulling them complete for different reason.
So far, nan Republican-controlled Ohio General Assembly has consistently refused to walk specified a law, and there’s been nary motion that they’ll beryllium immoderate much consenting this year.
But DeWine hasn’t yet dropped nan issue, telling reporters that nan state’s distracted driving restrictions, which he signed into rule astir 2 years ago, person led to an 11% alteration successful fatalities.
“The adjacent large measurement for america would beryllium for mandatory spot belts,” DeWine said. “We cognize that that would prevention a important number of lives.”
Death penalty
Since taking agency successful 2019, DeWine has had a de facto moratorium connected superior reward successful Ohio, consistently pushing backmost each scheduled execution arsenic it approaches.
While nan politician has blamed nan argumentation connected pharmaceutical companies’ unwillingness to waste Ohio narcotics to beryllium utilized successful executions, he has occasionally indicated successful caller years that he has individual doubts astir executions (though he’s usually been tight-lipped erstwhile asked).
DeWine said he’ll make a long-promised announcement astir Ohio’s decease punishment successful January. He besides said it would beryllium astir his individual stance connected superior punishment.
Even if DeWine makes specified a declaration, it’s not yet clear whether it would beryllium accompanied by taking immoderate benignant of action, specified arsenic asking lawmakers to alteration Ohio’s death-penalty law.
Don’t expect fireworks
DeWine, an establishment, old-school Republican, has shown himself to beryllium a pragmatist passim his 2 position arsenic governor.
DeWine has occasionally caught power from conservatives (most notably over his unilateral coronavirus orders and his 2023 veto of authorities to restrict transgender surgeries and information successful schoolhouse sports).
But he has besides sometimes been criticized by liberals arsenic spineless – specified arsenic erstwhile he signed a bill to let group to transportation concealed firearms without a licence aft GOP lawmakers unceremoniously rejected his gun-control package.
Even though DeWine is expected to caput into governmental status aft he leaves nan governor’s office, governmental experts and group acquainted pinch DeWine opportunity they don’t expect that he will now aggressively uncover governmental stances that he’s kept hidden until now.
Not only would that beryllium wholly retired of characteristic for DeWine, they said, but it would needlessly pain bridges pinch GOP lawmakers and others who will find whether nan politician spends 2026 getting his priorities accomplished aliases becoming an impotent lame duck.
“DeWine has learned, you’ve sewage to wound disconnected things you tin chew and do things that are possible,” said Ryan Stubenrauch, a GOP governmental advisor who antecedently worked connected a number of DeWine’s campaigns. “He’s been clear for decades nan things that he cares about, and he’s ever worked to further those things.”
Some past Ohio governors person made headlines arsenic they prepared to time off agency – specified arsenic Democratic ex-Gov. Dick Celeste, who successful precocious 1990 controversially commuted nan sentences of 25 women convicted of murdering aliases assaulting their husbands aliases partners.
With DeWine, “I don’t deliberation you’re going to spot fireworks for illustration that,” Stubenrauch said.
Even if DeWine is observant to not stone nan vessel excessively overmuch pinch skeptical lawmakers, it would beryllium reliable for immoderate politician to get an eager schedule past nan legislature successful 2026, arsenic it’s some an predetermination twelvemonth and a twelvemonth wherever nary authorities fund needs to beryllium passed.
“If you’re not expecting overmuch successful ’26, that’s really normal,” said Terry Casey, a seasoned Republican advisor from Columbus.
At nan aforesaid time, Casey said, negotiating pinch nan legislature is only portion of nan occupation of being governor.
“He’s engaged successful position of keeping everything moving on staffing-wise wrong nan government, nan operations, because group conscionable presume nan snowfall gets plowed and nan prisons get tally and nan checks spell retired and each those different things,” Casey said.
