The Washington Post reports that “values” have declined as an issue in Ohio. Of course it is the conservative values of the religious right which voters are losing interest in:
Two years ago, Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell was a driving force in the triumphant campaign for a state constitutional amendment to outlaw same-sex marriage. That helped cause a surge in turnout of “values voters,” who helped deliver this pivotal state to President Bush’s successful reelection effort.
As the Republican candidate for governor, Blackwell has been counting on values voters to do for him this year what they did for the party in 2004. But the culture wars are being eclipsed as a voting issue by economic worries and Republican scandals that have altered the political dynamic here in striking ways. Several polls find Blackwell trailing his Democratic opponent, five-term Rep. Ted Strickland, by double digits with less than four weeks to go until the Nov. 7 midterm elections…
“What I call the bread-and-butter issues probably are more prominently on the minds of people today than two years ago,” Strickland said in an interview. “I think a lot of Ohioans are feeling economically insecure. Consequently, they are less willing to be distracted by issues that don’t involve the economic security of their families.”
His observation is borne out by a recent survey by the University of Cincinnati’s Ohio Poll, which found that 63 percent of likely voters in the state are basing their choice of candidates on the “issues” rather than “character.” The poll found that seven in 10 Strickland supporters were most concerned about “issues,” including the economy and education; just over half of Blackwell supporters felt that way.
Ohio voters are finally figuring out that it is more important whether they have a job, health care, and good schools than it is to worry about whether two guys might get married.
Hopefully voters don’t lose all interest in values, but instead substitue liberal values of liberty, support for reason over superstition, and limiting the powers of the state over the authoritarian values of the religious right and the current Republicans.
Oh, good. It’s a matter of priority,a focus on public vs. private: values affecting the health of the commonwealth vs. issues of individual values. And the fact that we haven’t been able to put things in perspective is a symptom (and perhaps also a cause) of the pathology of our society today. The last few elections have driven me nuts: with the survival of our democracy, our constitution, our economy and our entire country (not to mention the world and the planetary environment) at stake, voter and media focus on issues like abortion and gay marriage, have struck me as bizarrely off the mark. Your last two paragraphs have got it exactly right.