Wednesday, March 1, 2000
Ohio House 32nd District (Rep.)
BY PHILLIP PINA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Republican voters in Ohio House District 32 will chose between a party endorsed education leader and a former township trustee backed by a conservative faction of the GOP.
Tawana Keels Simons, in her fifth year on the Princeton Board of Education, says the most pressing issue is education and tax relief. Her opponent in the primary, Jim Raussen, who served four years on the Harrison Township Board of Trustees, agreed.
How they would go about it is where they differ.
Mr. Raussen wants to decrease state mandates on education and put more of the controls and responsibilities with local districts. He is calling for an overhaul of the state's education department.
Mrs. Simons uses her background on the school board and work with education groups to point out the future depends on the quality of schools children are provided. She suggests starting back at square one.
“The current focus is always on funding,” she said. “But we need to start at the beginning. We need to look and decide the things we need to teach our children, and then look at what it takes to provide that education,” she said.
Aside from education, both candidates say residents need tax relief. The state has taken too much of taxpayers' money the past few years, Mrs. Simons said. Ohio needs to return that generosity with tax cuts, she added.
“The state continues to have a surplus. We need to return that surplus and give tax relief to the families and small businesses in Ohio,” Mr. Raussen said. With that comes responsible spending, he said; and he would like to see voters have more of a say in what taxes are paid and what projects are funded.
THE CANDIDATES
Jim Raussen
Personal: 29, 75 Bishopsgate Drive No. 316, Woodlawn. Senior claims representative for Great American Insurance Co. Bachelor's in political science from Xavier University. Family: Wife, Tara.
Experience/qualifications: Mr. Raussen was a Hamilton Township trustee from 1994 to 1997, losing a bid for re-election. During his term, he was elected president of the Warren County Township Trustees Association.
Tawana Keels Simons
Personal: 39, 11119 E. Allenhurst Blvd., Sharonville. Chief executive officer, AdTech U.S.A. Inc. Bachelor's in public affairs from Indiana University. Family: Husband, Jon Myron Simons; and three daughters, Jillian, Karmen and Tiffany.
Experience/qualifications: A small-business owner, Mrs. Simons is serving her second term and fifth year on the Princeton Board of Education. She serves on the executive committee and board of trustees of the Ohio School Boards Association and was appointed by Gov. Bob Taft to a consumer-oriented commission.
Back to Primary 2000 page
Hamilton County
Cincinnati Public Schools levies
Deer Park, Mariemont, Madeira, Three Rivers schools
Hamilton Co. Commissioner (Dem.)
Hamilton Co. Commissioner(Rep.)
Hamilton Co. safety, road issues
Ohio House 31st District (Dem.)
Ohio House 32nd District (Dem.)
Ohio House 32nd District (Rep.)
Ohio House 34th District (Rep.)
Ohio House 36th District (Rep.)
Ohio House 37th District (Rep.)
Clermont County
Clermont Co. commissioner (Rep.)
Clermont Co. issues
Milford school bond issue
Ohio House 72nd District (Rep.)
Butler County
Union or West Chester: Name the township
Butler Co. police, fire levies
Lakota, Talawanda schools
Monroe school district
Ohio House 60th District (Rep.)
U.S. House 8th District (Dem.)
Warren County
Mason, Kings, Little Miami schools
Warren Co. commissioner
Warren Co. fire levies
Ohio House 2nd District (Rep.)
U.S. House, 6th District (Rep.)
