CANDIDATES

They took different approaches to their Dispatch interviews, DeWine, 71, stressing his record as attorney general, his policy proposals and his work ethic while not mentioning Cordray by name and largely avoiding direct criticism of his opponent.

Cordray, 59, who preceded DeWine as attorney general, was quick to point out what he sees as DeWine’s flaws while attempting to build a case that Ohio needs a Democrat in the governor’s office to serve as a check on a “backward thinking” Republican-controlled General Assembly.

Here are some highlights from their interviews beyond the typical governor’s race back-and-forth between the two men, each of whom denounced the other as a failure during their debate in Dayton last week.

Following service that included county prosecutor,

state lawmaker, U.S. representative, lieutenant governor and 12 years in the U.S. Senate, DeWine said, “I’ve spent my life preparing for this job.” He pledged that the dominant daily factor in a DeWine administration would be the welfare of Ohioans.

“I will pull people together when I am governor of this state, no doubt about it. Most of the issues we face should not be partisan issues — education should not be partisan, the drug problem should not be partisan. Ohio is a centrist state ... even in this toxic atmosphere we have in politics today, I still believe I can pull people together,” he said.

DeWine said the priorities he has laid out during his campaign, such as an emphasis on the well-being of children, fighting the opioid crisis and pumping up jobs and the economy, are the right priorities for Ohio.

“I will bring the same passion to the governor’s office I brought to my role as attorney general. I guess I would challenge anybody in regard to work ethic, my Cordray DeWine

energy, my determination — that’s what I will bring to the governor’s office.”

Invited at one point to assess Cordray’s record and any perceived shortcomings, DeWine demurred, going on to describe himself as a “problem solver” and “good listener.”

Cordray, who was a state representative, state solicitor general, county treasurer, state treasurer and attorney general before serving as director of the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for six years, said he has a 15-year record of getting results at the federal, state and local levels of government.

He considers an “overriding issue in this election” to be swearing in a Democrat as governor to serve as a check on the “crazy things” emanating from the GOP-dominated

legislature, such as a “heartbeat bill” to ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected. Republican Gov. John Kasich vetoed such a bill, which DeWine says he would sign.

“We need more balance, we need more checks,” Cordray said, adding that “one-party government has led to complacency and corruption,” such as the federal payday-lending investigation that ousted former GOP House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger, and the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow scandal involving allegations of fraud and large campaign donations to Republicans.

Cordray also said Ohioans should elect him to the governor’s office, and Democrats to Congress, to serve as a midterm check on President Donald Trump and Republican rule in Washington.

“This is a change election,” he said. “If this election becomes an affirmation of the Trump path, then heaven help our country. ... If that kind of politics wins in Ohio, that’s

not a good sign for Ohio.”

Cordray faulted DeWine, who distanced himself from Trump critic Kasich and portrayed himself as proTrump during the primary, for being sparing in his criticism of Trump and being unwilling to stand up to him for political reasons.

“When I think the president is wrong, I will say so,” DeWine said. “I don’t agree with the president on everything,” he said, citing what he sees as Trump’s undeserved disdain for Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a friend of DeWine’s when they were in the Senate.

While sidestepping questions about Trump’s respect for the rule of law and his fitness for office, DeWine said he would not hesitate to call out Trump if his actions threaten to harm Ohioans.

Both DeWine and Cordray said Ohio’s governor needs a working relationship with any president, including Trump.