They haven't lived in this state to know enough about how bad our politics are. I also agree that Jennifer Brunner would have been great running for another high office. She'd be an excellent gubernatorial candidate in 2014, but I haven't heard her name even mentioned so far among the list of potential Democratic candidates. Strickland is considering running again, as well as Tim Ryan, Congressman from the Youngstown area, Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald, recently defeated Congresswoman Betty Sutton of the west side of Akron, and Richard Cordray, former State Treasurer and Attorney General.
Strickland was a decent governor, but I worry somewhat about his age (he's 71 now). Not that a septuagenerian can't still potentially do well, but I think it's nonetheless a valid concern, and he will be 73 in 2014. FitzGerald would bring a city/metro perspective to the state from Cleveland, something that is shockingly lacking in our politics given the unusual number of large and medium-sized cities we have. With so many of Ohio's major cities being reliably Democratic, it is surprising that the Republicans have been able to maintain control of the State Legislature and Governorship for so long. FitzGerald, however, is also still relatively new in the position since Cuyahoga County moved to a charter system of government last year. I like Cordray a lot, and couldn't believe that he lost to Mike DeWine. Of them all, I think Cordray would be Kasich's nemesis, given his background and directorship at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. I imagine a lot of big corporations and the Oil/Fracking industry spending a lot of money to try to protect Kasich and stop Cordray. The good news is, at least, with Obama's successful campaign, we now know it isn't a foolproof strategy for them.
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