JULIE CARR SMYTH

Government and politics reporter

Smyth has covered government and politics from Columbus, Ohio, for The Associated Press since 2006.

FILE - People gather in a parking lot as people arrive for early in-person voting in Cincinnati, Nov. 2, 2023. Ohio is expected to play a starring role in the 2024 high-stakes races for state supreme court seats. The Ohio Supreme Court’s 4-3 Republican majority could flip to Democrats’ favor in the fall if the party sweeps the three seats up for election this year. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Ohio primary: Open seat on state supreme court could flip partisan control

Ohio is expected to star in this year’s big races for state supreme court seats. During Tuesday’s primary, Democrats will be choosing a candidate to compete for an open seat on a court that will be at the center of fights over redistricting, public education, health care, environmental issues and cr

FILE - Demonstrators show signs for Issue 1, guaranteeing reproductive rights, in a parking lot as people arrive for early in-person voting in Cincinnati, Nov. 2, 2023. Ohio's political pendulum swung left last year, as voters overwhelmingly supported enshrining abortion rights and voted to legalize recreational marijuana. The victories have encouraged Democrats defending a pivotal U.S. Senate seat in a state that's twice supported Donald Trump by wide margins. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Purple Ohio? Parties in the former bellwether state take lessons from 2023 abortion, marijuana votes

Academics, politicos and Republicans caution not to read too much into 2023’s election outcomes in Ohio.

FILE - Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine speaks during a news conference, Dec. 29, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio. DeWine parted ways with Donald Trump on Monday, March 11, 2024, and endorsed state Sen. Matt Dolan over Trump-backed businessman Bernie Moreno in the state's three-way GOP primary for a U.S. Senate seat. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine bypasses Trump-backed Bernie Moreno for Matt Dolan with US Senate race nod

Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has parted ways with Donald Trump to endorse state Sen. Matt Dolan over Trump-backed businessman Bernie Moreno in the three-way GOP primary for U.S.

Matt Dolan, Ohio Senate Republican from the 24th District, listens to colleagues speak at the Ohio State House Senate Chambers in Columbus, Ohio, Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Joe Maiorana)

Republican Matt Dolan lands former US Sen. Rob Portman’s endorsement in Ohio’s Senate primary

Republican Matt Dolan has landed the endorsement of former U.S. Sen. Rob Portman in the three-way primary to face Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown this fall.

From left, Mike Kaylmyer moderates a Republican primary Senate forum between State Rep. Matt Dolan, Ohio Secretary of State Frank Larose, and Bernie Moreno, Feb. 19, 2024, in the TLB Auditorium at the University of Findlay in Findlay, Ohio. A fractious three-way Republican primary for the chance to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown this November is culminating in Ohio, where candidates are divided more over their pasts than their policy positions. Moreno, LaRose and Dolan all favor some level of federal abortion restriction and tough treatment of immigrants lacking permanent legal status, among similar stances. It’s whether voters can trust them at their words that the three and their deep-pocketed allies are disputing ahead of Ohio’s March 19 primary. (Jeremy Wadsworth/The Blade via AP, file)

Republicans running to face Ohio’s Democratic US Sen. Sherrod Brown this fall vie for voters’ trust

A fractious three-way Republican primary for the chance to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown this November is culminating in Ohio, where candidates are divided more over their pasts than their policy positions.

FILE - Ohio Rep. Derek Merrin stands while he advocates a yes vote on the Heartbeat Bill at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio on Wednesday, April 10, 2019. Since last year, GOP candidates for Ohio’s 9th Congressional District have left and entered the field on a dime, endorsements have hopped from campaign to campaign, and several big-name Republicans have split their loyalties three ways. (Brooke LaValley/The Columbus Dispatch via AP)

The latest shake-up in Ohio’s topsy-turvy congressional primary eases minds within the GOP

This weekend’s suspension of a troubled congressional campaign in Ohio has eased the minds of establishment Republicans hopeful they can flip a Democratic seat this fall by defeating the longest-serving woman in Congress.

FILE - Ohio Rep. Craig Riedel speaks with members of the media after the Ohio House of Representatives voted 90-0 to remove Rep. Larry Householder, as Speaker of the House on Thursday, July 30, 2020 at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio. Since last year, GOP candidates for Ohio’s 9th Congressional District have left and entered the field on a dime, endorsements have hopped from campaign to campaign, and several big-name Republicans have split their loyalties three ways. (Joshua A. Bickel /The Columbus Dispatch via AP, File)

High-stakes GOP congressional primary in Ohio takes voters, Republicans on a roller coaster ride

When Republican J.R. Majewski announced his “(almost) resignation” from a hotly contested congressional primary in northwest Ohio this week, it was merely the latest turn in the endlessly chaotic GOP effort to oust one of this fall’s most vulnerable House Democrats: Marcy Kaptur.

In this Aug. 25, 2016 photo, Columbus State Community College professor Judith Dann, a historian and resident of Homer, Ohio, stands next to a cabinet of items about the first woman nominated for U.S. president, Victoria Woodhull, at the Homer Public Library in Homer, Ohio. Nearly a century and a half before Hillary Clinton became the Democratic party's presidential nominee, Woodhull, a fiery activist from Ohio, became the first woman nominated for U.S. president when the fledgling Equal Rights Party picked her to face incumbent Republican President Ulysses S. Grant in 1872, decades before women won the right to vote. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth)

Long before Nikki Haley, Victoria Woodhull became the first woman to run for president

More than a century and a half before Nikki Haley’s run for the GOP presidential nomination, a fiery activist from Ohio became the first woman nominated for U.S. president.

FILE - Rep. Justin Jones, D-Nashville, speaks outside the House chamber after the State of the State address Feb. 5, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. Disagreements over abortion rights, gun control and treatment of racial minorities are just some of the issues that have caused several political leaders to say they can’t take an oath or recite the Pledge of Allegiance. In Tennessee, Jones earlier this month declined to lead the pledge during a legislative floor session. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, File)

Oaths and pledges have been routine for political officials. That’s changing in a polarized America

Elected officials throughout modern American history have sworn oaths to uphold constitutions and pledged allegiance to the flag without much controversy.

FILE - A group of Ohio democratic leaders greet President Truman when his train stopped briefly at Crestline, Ohio, June 4, 1948. Standing with Truman is Former Gov. Frank J. Lausche, right, and Albert A. Horstman, former democratic chairman. (AP Photo, File)

New book on ‘whistle-stop’ campaign trains describes politics and adventure throughout history

Just in time for the 2024 presidential election, a new book chronicles the storied history of whistle-stop campaign trains, from the earliest days of rail travel through to today.

Former FirstEnergy CEO Charles Jones, right, walks with his lawyer Carole Rendon toward the courtroom at the Summit County courthouse in Akron, Ohio, on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024. Two fired top executives of FirstEnergy Corp. and Ohio’s former top utility regulator have pleaded not guilty in connection with a $60 million bribery scheme. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

Two fired utility execs and a former top Ohio regulator plead not guilty in bribery scheme

Two fired top executives of FirstEnergy Corp. and Ohio’s former top utility regulator have pleaded not guilty in connection with a $60 million bribery scheme.

FILE - This combination of photos shows logos of X, formerly known as Twitter, top left; Snapchat, top right; Facebook, bottom left; and TikTok, bottom right. A federal judge extended a block on enforcement Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, of an Ohio law that would require children under 16 to get parental consent to use social media apps as a legal challenge proceeds. (AP Photo, File)

A judge has blocked enforcement of an Ohio law limiting kids’ use of social media during litigation

A federal judge has extended his block on enforcement of an Ohio law that would require children under 16 to get parental consent to use social media apps while a legal challenge proceeds.

FILE - In this 2015 file photo, FirstEnergy Corp. President and CEO Charles "Chuck" Jones appears at the company's Akron, Ohio headquarters. Two fired FirstEnergy Corp. executives have been indicted in connection with a $60 million bribery scheme in Ohio. Republican Attorney General Dave Yost announced the indictment of former CEO Chuck Jones Monday, Feb. 12, 2024. (Phil Masturzo/Akron Beacon Journal via AP, File)

Fired FirstEnergy execs indicted in $60 million Ohio bribery scheme; regulator faces new charges

Two fired FirstEnergy Corp. executives have been indicted in connection with a $60 million bribery scheme in Ohio.

FILE - Bernie Moreno is acknowledged at a rally with former President Donald Trump at the Delaware County Fairgrounds, on April 23, 2022, in Delaware, Ohio. In his bid for U.S. Senate in Ohio, Moreno casts himself as a "political outsider." But Moreno served on two government boards at entities that boosted his blockchain company while he served. (AP Photo/Joe Maiorana, File)

Bernie Moreno running for Senate as outsider, but public entities he served boosted his business

In his bid for U.S. Senate in Ohio, Trump-endorsed Republican Bernie Moreno casts himself as a “political outsider.”

FILE - Ohio Republican Attorney General Dave Yost speaks during an election night watch party, Nov. 8, 2022, in Columbus, Ohio. A coalition of voting-rights groups is vowing to fight on after Yost issued his second rejection Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024, of petition language it has submitted for a proposed constitutional amendment. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete, File)

Ohio attorney general opposes speeding up timeline for lawsuit over proposed voting rights amendment

Republican Attorney General Dave Yost has told the Ohio Supreme Court that a lawsuit filed against him by a coalition of civil rights organizations behind a proposed voting rights amendment shouldn’t be expedited.

FILE - Ohio Republican Attorney General Dave Yost speaks during an election night watch party, Nov. 8, 2022, in Columbus, Ohio. A coalition of voting-rights groups is vowing to fight on after Yost issued his second rejection Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024, of petition language it has submitted for a proposed constitutional amendment. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete, File)

Ohio Attorney General given until Monday to explain rejection of voting rights amendment to court

The Ohio Supreme Court has given Republican Attorney General Dave Yost until Monday to respond to the legal claims of the coalition of civil rights organizations that is challenging his rejection of a package of proposed voter protections they are working to place on November’s ballot.

Stanley Aronoff poses inside the Aronoff Center for the Arts in Cincinnati, March 30, 2012. Aronoff, a Republican who spent nearly 40 years in the Ohio Legislature, including eight as the powerful Senate president, died peacefully Wednesday evening, Jan. 31, 2024, said Tina Donnelly, managing partner at the law firm Aronoff, Rosen & Hunt. He was 91. (Jeff Swinger/The Cincinnati Enquirer via AP)

Former Ohio Senate President Stanley Aronoff dies at 91

Stanley J. Aronoff has died at age 91 after a long career that included nearly four decades in the Ohio Statehouse.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine discusses the final report of a working group on school bus safety Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, at the Ohio Department of Public Safety in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth)

Deadly school bus crash in Ohio yields safety, training guidance — but no seat belt mandate

A task force convened by Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine after a deadly school bus crash is recommending enhanced training for drivers and installing a host of new safety features.

Republican Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost speaks at a news conference Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024, at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio, where he expressed his support for legislation that would allow the state to begin using nitrogen gas to carry out the death penalty. Yost is flanked by the bill's sponsors, state Reps. Phil Plummer, left, and Brian Stewart. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth)

Could Ohio be the next state to use nitrogen gas in executions? A new method would end a 5-year halt

Ohio’s Republican attorney general is backing a legislative effort that would bring nitrogen gas executions to the state to end a yearslong unofficial moratorium on the death penalty.

FILE - Ohio Republican Attorney General Dave Yost speaks during an election night watch party, Nov. 8, 2022, in Columbus, Ohio. A coalition of voting-rights groups is vowing to fight on after Yost issued his second rejection Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024, of petition language it has submitted for a proposed constitutional amendment. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete, File)

Ohio attorney general rejects voting-rights coalition’s ballot petition for a 2nd time

A voting-rights coalition is vowing to fight on after Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost issued his second rejection of its petition language for a proposed constitutional amendment.

FILE - Republican U.S. Senate candidate Matt Dolan talks with reporters after conceding to JD Vance at a watch party in Independence, Ohio, Tuesday, May 3, 2022. The three Republicans vying to take on Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown this fall in Ohio's competitive U.S. Senate race, including Dolan, clashed bitterly in their first statewide debate Monday, Jan. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

GOP Senate contenders in Ohio face off for their first statewide debate

The three Republicans vying to take on Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown this fall in Ohio’s competitive U.S.

FILE - This undated file photo provided by the Ohio Governor's office shows Sam Randazzo, the former Public Utilities Commissioner of Ohio. The Ohio Supreme Court in a ruling Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024, reinstated a judge's order that allows the state to freeze $8 million in personal assets belonging to Randazzo. (AP Photo/Ohio Governor's office via AP, File)

Ohio can freeze ex-top utility regulator’s $8 million in assets, high court says

The Ohio Supreme Court has reinstated a judge’s order allowing the state to freeze $8 million in personal assets belonging to a former top Ohio utility regulator.

FILE - Bernie Moreno is acknowledged at a rally with former President Donald Trump at the Delaware County Fairgrounds, on April 23, 2022, in Delaware, Ohio. (AP Photo/Joe Maiorana, File)

Businessman Bernie Moreno, Trump’s Senate pick in Ohio, faced discrimination lawsuits, the AP finds

An Associated Press review has found businessman and Trump-backed Ohio U.S. Senate candidate Bernie Moreno faced lawsuits alleging discrimination against employees before he sold his high-end Cleveland car dealership.

Brittany Watts, center, speaks to a rally of supporters, Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024, in Warren, Ohio. A grand jury on Thursday decided that Watts, who was facing criminal charges for her handling of a home miscarriage, will not be charged. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Ohio woman who miscarried at home won’t be charged with corpse abuse, grand jury decides

An Ohio woman who miscarried on the toilet then left will not be criminally charged for her handling of a home miscarriage.

FILE - This combination of 2017-2022 photos shows the logos of Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and Snapchat on mobile devices. A trade group representing TikTok, Snapchat, Meta and other major tech companies sued Ohio on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024 over a pending law that requires children to get parental consent to use social media apps. (AP Photo/File)

A judge has temporarily halted enforcement of an Ohio law limiting kids’ use of social media

A federal judge has temporarily halted enforcement of an Ohio law that would require children under 16 to get parental consent to use social media apps. U.S.

FILE - People vote on Election Day, Nov. 7, 2023, at Knox Presbyterian Church in Cincinnati. On Monday, Jan. 8, 2024, a federal judge upheld as constitutional provisions of the sweeping election law that Ohio put in place last year, rejecting a Democratic law firm's challenge to strict new photo ID requirements, dropbox restrictions and tightened deadlines related to absentee and provisional ballots. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel, File)

A judge has found Ohio’s new election law constitutional, including a strict photo ID requirement

A judge has upheld as constitutional provisions of Ohio’s sweeping new election law. In a ruling Monday, U.S.

FILE - This combination of 2017-2022 photos shows the logos of Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and Snapchat on mobile devices. A trade group representing TikTok, Snapchat, Meta and other major tech companies sued Ohio on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024 over a pending law that requires children to get parental consent to use social media apps. (AP Photo/File)

A group representing TikTok, Meta and X sues Ohio over new law limiting kids’ use of social media

A trade group representing TikTok, Snapchat, Meta and other major tech companies has sued Ohio over a pending law that requires children to get parental consent to use social media apps.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine pauses as he speaks during a news conference, Friday, Dec. 29, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio. DeWine vetoed a measure Friday that would have banned gender-affirming care for minors and transgender athletes’ participation in girls and women’s sports, in a break from members of his party who championed the legislation. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Ohio’s GOP governor vetoes ban on gender-affirming care and transgender athletes in girls’ sports

Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has broken from his party and vetoed legislation banning all gender-affirming care for minors and transgender athletes’ participation in girls and women’s sports.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine pauses as he speaks during an interview with the Associated Press at The Ohio Governor's Residence in Columbus, Ohio, Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Ohio governor visits hospitals, talks to families as decision on gender-affirming care ban looms

BEXLEY, Ohio (AP) — Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has been visiting hospitals and speaking with families helped and harmed by gender-affirming care as he decides what action to take on legislation preventing minors from obtaining such treatments, he told The Associated Press in a year-end intervi

FILE - The U.S. Supreme Court is seen, with a carving of Justice in the foreground, April 19, 2023, in Washington. A Black Ohio woman who miscarried in her bathroom has been charged with abuse of a corpse and awaits grand jury action. Her case has sparked a national firestorm over the plight of pregnant women, especially women of color, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

Ohio prosecutor says he’s duty bound to bring miscarriage case to a grand jury

An Ohio prosecutor says it’s not within his power to drop a criminal charge against a woman who miscarried at her home, regardless of the pressure that national attention is bringing to her case.