The Sojourner’s Truth: Secretary of State Candidate O’Shaugnessy Tours Toledo Area

The love for a home state can inspire anyone to give back and make the state a better place to live for all. This is, according to the candidate herself, what motivated Maryellen O’Shaughnessy to run for Secretary of State in her first state-wide race.

When first elected to Columbus City Council, she drove across state towards Steubenville to visit a friend. On the way, the beauty of Ohio got her thinking of how to find out more about the Buckeye State.

“I just love my state and I would love to get to know it better,” O’Shaughnessy said. “If I ever have an opportunity to run state-wide then I am going to do it because there’s no better way to get to know the people throughout Ohio.”

Public service is a virtual heritage of the O’Shaughnessy family beginning with her great-grandfather who first ran for office in 1910. Family members have served in an assortment of elected roles from the state legislature to the Columbus City Council. Her father has served as a state senator.

The position of the Secretary of State is a critical position because “it is about our precious right to vote,” said O’Shaugnessy. Two main duties of the Secretary of State are serving as the chief elections officer and running the Business Services Division.

As the chief elections officer, the Secretary of State manages the election process and appoints members to the Board of Elections in 88 of Ohio’s counties. O’Shaughnessy commented on the need to continue the work that the current Secretary of State, Jennifer Brunner, has accomplished to ensure a smooth and fair election process in the future.

“We must make sure that we have smooth elections, make advances to the next step and look at easier ways for voting and circulating petitions without compromising security,” she said. “Making voting secure, making every vote count and making sure that we have ease of access to the counting is essential to do that.”

Read more here.

Posted on June 10, 2010