The election is over, but the dust is far from settled. Welcome to the Weekly Roundup, where we bring you the top stories from today’s Dayton Daily News and major stories over the past week you may have missed.
This week, that includes analyzing the impact of Tuesday’s election, which will bring major policy changes at the state level, and notable changes at the local level. This week we also launch our annual Valley Food Relief campaign.
Our mission is to help you understand what’s really going on in the Dayton region. This includes comprehensive coverage of local governments and agencies, hard-hitting investigations, and in-depth analyses of important issues.
Do you have a news tip or an issue you think our reporters should look into? Contact me at Josh.Sweigart@coxinc.com, or you can use our anonymous tipline.
The impact of Tuesday’s election
• A consequential election: Voters here and across Ohio cast ballots Tuesday on a number of issues that will have long-lasting ramifications for our region and state.
• Issue 1: While the votes have been counted and voters agreed to enshrine abortion rights in the Ohio Constitution, the fight over abortion is far from over. Some Republicans are proposing removing power from the Ohio Supreme Court to prevent Issue 1 from taking abortion laws off the books, while Democrats are eager to remove abortion restrictions made unconstitutional by Issue 1. Read the latest here.
• Issue 2: Ohioans voted to legalize recreational marijuana, but a lot of questions remain. The law goes into effect on Dec. 7, allowing possession of a small amount of the drug. But there’s no way to legally obtain weed, and it’s not clear where you can use it.
• School levies failed: Multiple area schools seeking new funding failed to pass levies on Tuesday night, including some trying for a second time and some who were seeking funding for new or updated buildings, according to final, unofficial results from area boards of election.
- Others passed: Among those districts that were able to pass levies on Tuesday were Beavercreek, Oakwood and Troy. Yellow Springs appeared to have passed an issue to update the village’s schools by a thin margin.
• Incumbents voted out: In several local races, voters expressed dissatisfaction with entrenched incumbents. Trotwood Mayor Mary McDonald was among several incumbents ousted there. Same for Englewood Mayor Tom Franz and incumbent councilmembers in Centerville and Clayton.
• Election night hiccups: Counting the vote did not go smoothly in some area counties on Tuesday. An incident at a polling place and technical glitch slowed results in Montgomery County, while some technical issues in Warren County slowed reporting of results there. Elections officials say these issues had no effect on the actual vote count.
- Yellow Springs snafu: In Greene County, actual errors displayed on ballots for two races. Most notably, some ballots in Yellow Springs told voters to vote for two candidates, when they should have said vote for three.
• Election results: Go here to search final, unofficial results in all contested races and issues.
Hunger is not a choice. Giving is.
• State of hunger: Nearly 12% of area families report food insecurity, according to the most recent data. Local food bank officials say the number is likely higher than this as they are seeing people coming back for help more than ever.
- Feeling the squeeze: As families struggle with the inflated cost of groceries, so do area food banks. The Foodbank Inc. says their budget for buying food has increased by a third in recent years.
• What you can do: Every year, the Dayton Daily News partners with Valley Food Relief to raise funds for local food banks. Go here to make a donation or pick up an envelope in Sunday’s paper. Go here for a letter from our publisher on why we do this.