Less talk and more action is what state Sen. C.J. Prentiss, D-Cleveland, said she wants from Republican Ohio lawmakers who are cutting social programs that benefit the poor. Prentiss was the keynote speaker at the Athens County Democratic Party's annual fall dinner held last night at the Elks Lodge, 600 W. Union St.
When you take an oath of office
you can't just sit there and just smile. You have to be aggressive for the people you represent she said.
In Athens County, 27 percent of the population lives in poverty, and 4.6 percent are unemployed, Prentiss said.
Prentiss is the minority whip of the Ohio Senate and came to Athens to support local candidates, including Terry Anderson, who is running for the Ohio Senate.
Prentiss said her complaints are falling on deaf ears in the Republican-ruled senate. Only 11 of 33 state senators are Democrats.
You're looking at a team that is committed to turning this state around Prentiss said of she and Anderson.
The lack of good jobs is the number one problem in southeast Ohio, Anderson said.
We have to get more jobs down here
and I have seen no plan in Columbus that would do that
he said. He also said addressing the problems with school funding is a key priority.
They've had most of a decade to fix school funding
and they have not done it
Anderson said, adding that legislators in Columbus would not find a viable solution unless they actually started looking for one.
Athens County Commissioners Mark Sullivan and Bill Theisen, who are both running for re-election, spoke to the audience about how important it was that people vote a straight Democratic ticket, saying that the more Democrats that were in Columbus, the more money the commissioners would have to allocate in Athens.
Kevin Martin, 53, of New Marshfield, said he has been helping the Democratic Party for as long as he can remember.
It's the party for the people
for the common man and for the Union
he said.
Martin handed out Kerry/Edwards bumper stickers as he greeted people at the door, meeting as many fellow Democrats as possible.
I came here to see the people from the county
he said.
Martin is a Vietnam veteran and is the director of the Southeastern Ohio Veterans Memorial Support Group, an organization that supports veterans' families by providing food baskets and also donating items to Veterans Affairs hospitals.
Matthew Martin, Kevin's son, 27, of The Plains, is helping with Athens Municipal Court Judge Douglas Bennett's race for the Fourth District Court of Appeals.
The Court of Appeals has been all Republican for a long time
and it is time for a little balance
