Barack Obama was raised by a single mother and his grandparents.
They didn't have much money, but they taught him values from the Kansas
heartland where they grew up. He took out loans to put himself through school.
After college, he worked for Christian churches in Chicago, helping communities
devastated when steel plants closed. 
Obama turned down
lucrative job offers after law school to return to Chicago, leading a
successful voter registration drive. He joined a small law firm, taught
constitutional law and, guided by his Christian faith, stayed active in his
community. Obama and his wife Michelle are proud parents of two daughters, Sasha
and Malia.
The Early Years
Barack Obama was born in Hawaii on August 4th, 1961. His father, Barack
Obama Sr., was born and raised in a small village in Kenya, where he grew up
herding goats with his own father, who was a domestic servant to the British.
Barack's mother, Ann Dunham, grew up in small-town Kansas. Her father worked
on oil rigs during the Depression, and then signed up for World War II after
Pearl Harbor, where he marched across Europe in Patton's army. Her mother went
to work on a bomber assembly line, and after the war, they studied on the G.I.
Bill, bought a house through the Federal Housing Program, and moved west to
Hawaii.
It was there, at the University of Hawaii, where Barack's parents met. His
mother was a student there, and his father had won a scholarship that allowed
him to leave Kenya and pursue his dreams in America.
Barack's father eventually returned to Kenya, and Barack grew up with his
mother in Hawaii, and for a few years in Indonesia. Later, he moved to New York,
where he graduated from Columbia University in 1983.
The College Years
Remembering the values of empathy and service that his mother taught him,
Barack put law school and corporate life on hold after college and moved to
Chicago in 1985, where he became a community organizer with a church-based group
seeking to improve living conditions in poor neighborhoods plagued with crime
and high unemployment.
The group had some success, but Barack had come to realize that in order to
truly improve the lives of people in that community and other communities, it
would take not just a change at the local level, but a change in our laws and in
our politics.
He went on to earn his law degree from Harvard in 1991, where he became the
first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. Soon after, he
returned to Chicago to practice as a civil rights lawyer and teach
constitutional law. Finally, his advocacy work led him to run for the Illinois
State Senate, where he served for eight years. In 2004, he became the third
African American since Reconstruction to be elected to the U.S. Senate.
Political Career
It has been the rich and varied experiences of Barack Obama's life - growing
up in different places with people who had differing ideas - that have animated
his political journey. Amid the partisanship and bickering of today's public
debate, he still believes in the ability to unite people around a politics of
purpose - a politics that puts solving the challenges of everyday Americans
ahead of partisan calculation and political gain.
In the Illinois State Senate, this meant working with both Democrats and
Republicans to help working families get ahead by creating programs like the
state Earned Income Tax Credit, which in three years provided over $100 million
in tax cuts to families across the state. He also pushed through an expansion of
early childhood education, and after a number of inmates on death row were found
innocent, Senator Obama worked with law enforcement officials to require the
videotaping of interrogations and confessions in all capital cases.
In the U.S. Senate, he has focused on tackling the challenges of a
globalized, 21st century world with fresh thinking and a politics that no longer
settles for the lowest common denominator. His first law was passed with
Republican Tom Coburn, a measure to rebuild trust in government by allowing
every American to go online and see how and where every dime of their tax
dollars is spent. He has also been the lead voice in championing ethics reform
that would root out Jack Abramoff-style corruption in Congress.
As a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, Senator Obama has fought to
help Illinois veterans get the disability pay they were promised, while working
to prepare the VA for the return of the thousands of veterans who will need care
after Iraq and Afghanistan. Recognizing the terrorist threat posed by weapons of
mass destruction, he traveled to Russia with Republican Dick Lugar to begin a
new generation of non-proliferation efforts designed to find and secure deadly
weapons around the world. And knowing the threat we face to our economy and our
security from America's addiction to oil, he's working to bring auto companies,
unions, farmers, businesses and politicians of both parties together to promote
the greater use of alternative fuels and higher fuel standards in our cars.
Whether it's the poverty exposed by Katrina, the genocide in Darfur, or the
role of faith in our politics, Barack Obama continues to speak out on the issues
that will define America in the 21st century. But above all his accomplishments
and experiences, he is most proud and grateful for his family. His wife,
Michelle, and his two daughters, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, live on Chicago's
South Side.
Vice-President----Joseph
Biden
www.barackobama.com
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr., age 65, was
born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on November 20, 1942, to Joseph Sr. and Jean
Biden. He was the oldest of four children. In 1953, the Biden family moved from
Pennsylvania to Claymont, Delaware. Biden attended parochial school at St.
Helena’s School in Wilmington and the Archmere Academy in Claymont. Public
service was part of the Biden family, with one of Joe's great grandfathers
serving as a Pennsylvania state senator.
After graduating from the University of Delaware in 1965 and from law school
at Syracuse University in 1968, Biden moved back to the Wilmington area and set
up his own law firm. He practiced law until 1972.
In 1970, Biden – at age 27 – ran for New
Castle County Council and won in a Republican district. At age 29, he launched
an improbable bid to unseat two-term Republican U.S. Sen. J. Caleb Boggs. With
very little help from the state establishment, and with his sister as his
campaign manager, Biden defeated Boggs by 3,162 votes.
Just weeks after the election, Biden’s wife, Neilia, and their 1-year-old
daughter, Naomi, were killed and their two young sons critically injured in an
auto accident. Biden was sworn in at his son's hospital bedside and began
commuting to Washington every day by train, a practice he has maintained
throughout his career in the Senate.
In 1977, Biden married Jill Jacobs. Jill
Biden, who holds a PhD in education, has been an educator for over
two decades in Delaware's schools. Currently she is a professor at Delaware
Technical Community College.
Senator Biden has three children: Beau, Hunter and Ashley. Beau currently
serves as Delaware's Attorney General; a captain in the 261st Signal Brigade of
the Delaware National Guard, he will be deployed to Iraq this October. Ashley is
a social worker and Hunter is an attorney. Senator Biden also has five
grandchildren: Naomi, Finnegan, Roberta Mabel, Natalie, and Robert Hunter.
In 1988, Biden suffered a cranial aneurysm
and nearly died. He recovered by early 1989 after two surgeries and has enjoyed
good health since then.
In addition to serving as U.S. Senator, Biden has been an adjunct professor
at the Widener University School of Law since 1991, where he teaches a seminar
on constitutional law.
Key Career Accomplishments
Biden became ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee in 1997 and
served as chairman of the committee from 2001 to 2003 and from January 2007 to
the present. He has served as chairman or ranking member of the Judiciary
Committee for sixteen years. He is recognized as one of the nation's leading
authorities on foreign policy, as well as one of its most influential voices on
terrorism, drug policy, crime, and issues important to women. He has been a
tireless advocate for working families and has reached across the aisle to work
with Republicans on tackling some of the greatest challenges facing Americans.
- Like Barack Obama, Biden has been an outspoken critic of Bush’s handling of
the war in Iraq.
- Biden’s leadership was instrumental in helping to bring stability and peace
to the Balkans. In 1999, Biden wrote a resolution endorsing the air war in
Kosovo that was passed by the Senate.
- Biden is a leader on the congressional effort to end genocide in Darfur.
- In the late 1990s, Biden led the effort in the Senate to bring Poland,
Hungary and the Czech Republic into NATO and to pass the Chemical Weapons
Treaty.
- Biden has been instrumental in crafting almost every major piece of crime
legislation over the past two decades. His Violent Crime Control and Law
Enforcement Act of 1994 put more than 100,000 police officers on America’s
streets and has been credited with bringing down crime rates to the lowest in a
generation.
- In 1996, Biden authored legislation to create a national registry of sex
offenders, which tracks people convicted of sex crimes involving violence or
committed against minors.
- Biden authored and passed the landmark Violence Against Women Act, the
strongest legislation to date that criminalizes domestic violence and holds
batterers accountable.
- Biden was a strong supporter of the Family and Medical Leave Act, cracked
down on deadbeat dads, and has been a consistent champion for equal pay.
- Biden was one of the first to introduce legislation to address global
warming and he co-sponsored the most aggressive piece of climate change
legislation in the U.S. Senate.
- Biden is a champion on the issue of making college more affordable by using
the tax code to reduce costs.
- Biden was successful in passing a provision that prevents budget cuts to
military facilities while the nation is at war, one of his key priorities,
ensuring that all veterans have top-notch medical treatment in a fully-funded VA
health care system.
Senator Biden has a proven record of bringing people together to get things
done. From global warming to combating violence against women to confronting the
challenges of the dangerous world in which we live, Joe Biden has fought every
day over the course of his life in public service to improve the lives of middle
class families.
-
-
U.S. Congress 3rd District----Jane
Mitakides
-
www.jane08.com
A native Daytonian with a background in strategic communications and
investor relations, Jane understands the importance of a sound economic policy,
fair trade agreements and policies that will bring encourage business growth and
add jobs to our community. As founder of Ohio-based Helsley Advertising,
Jane has worked with businesses all over America, gaining an in-depth knowledge
of business and investor relations that will serve our region well. Awards
for her work include prestigious ANDY, ADDY and CLIO awards. As recently
as July 2008, Jane was recognized for national leadership by the National
Coordinated Effort of Hellenes.
Jane founded Helsley Advertising in March 1981, and has served clients
as diversified as Giant Corporation, AT&T and a wide variety of banks and
financial institutions. She was one of the first women in
advertising to have full brand responsibility for Procter and Gamble
brands. In the mid 1990's, Jane also invested in a small company,
Dental Recycling North America, serving during the company's early period
as Director of Marketing. Now, DRNA has grown to be the North American
leader in dental recycling -- a complex business dealing with both chemical and
bio-hazards, and providing an important service for both dental practices
and large facilities, including the University of Texas Health Science
Center. Jane is proud of her continuing involvement with this
highly-successful and environmentally-important company.
Jane Mitakides
has a solid record of supporting our military and veterans, and will stand up
for them and Wright Patterson Air Force Base when she is in Washington. As
a member of an all-military family, Jane knows elected officials should serve
with the same honor and sense of mission as those who serve our country in
uniform. She believes in lowering taxes for millions more Americans,
ending out-of-control gas prices and oil speculation and has lead the fight for
affordable insurance for all Americans.
Jane also brings 20 years
of political and campaign experience to her role as candidate for OH-3.
She is a founding member of both the Women's Council of the Democratic
Senatorial Campaign Committee and The Small Business Council of the Democratic
National Committee. Jane is also active with organizations focused on issues of
interest to Greek Americans, and was recently honored by PSEKA, the
International Coordinating Committee for Justice for Cyprus. A tireless
advocate for our community, Jane has served on a wide variety of community
boards, including the Development Board of St. Elizabeth
Hospital.
Married for 26 years to John Mitakides, a dentist who has
practiced in the Dayton area for over 30 years, Jane is also the very proud
mother of two children: Katie, who is completing her PhD in International
Relations, and Andrew, a recent graduate of Hampden-Sydney College.
"Jane has been my friend for many years as we have
campaigned throughout Ohio. Over those years, I have come to know her as an
incredibly hard worker who I believe has the ability to transcend politics in
order to finally get results on the serious issues facing our nation and the
state of Ohio.
As a local businesswoman, Jane understands what it takes
to bring good jobs to our community and strengthen the middle class. In
Congress, she will bring people together to get the job done for our families on
issues such as healthcare, the environment, and
education."
Ohio Governor Ted Strickland
State
Representative----Bill Horne
www.billhorne.org
My wife Connie and I live in Highland County on the family farm
where I grew up. We have two children, Kathy and Benjamin, and a grandson
Zach.
I served in the Army, and graduated from college with the help of
the G.I. Bill. I'm a Veteran, former plant manager of a manufacturing
facility, a small businessman, an economics professor, a columnist for five
local papers, and an active civic and community leader.
I am
running for State Representative of the 86th District to represent
all the people of Clinton, Highland and Pike counties.
I know that the future of the
86th district and all of Ohio depends on creative and courageous approaches to
the problems we have.
In the last decade, the state has lost hundreds of
thousands of jobs, taxes have reached record levels and college tuition has
risen to 50% more than the national average. Our school funding issue has
been ignored and the health care crisis has left children, seniors, and families
uninsured.
Ohio has been headed in the wrong
direction and leaders with vision are needed to change that trend. With
your support, I will fight for change and help create a new vision of prosperity
for Ohio.
I am a proven leader and will listen to what you have to
say. I’ll fight for good jobs, quality education, and affordable
healthcare for all Ohioans.
12th
District Court of Appeals Judge---Laura Curliss
www.electcurlissjudge.com
Hello and thank you for visiting my website
www.electcurlissjudge.com. My name is Laura Curliss. I’m asking the citizens in
the eight counties in the Ohio Twelfth District to elect me to the Court of
Appeals. I am a native of Clinton County, having been born in Wilmington, Ohio
and raised near Blanchester, Ohio. I attended public school, graduating from
Blanchester High School as class salutatorian in 1980. My father, a U.S. Army
veteran, worked at the Irwin Auger Bit Company in Wilmington most of his life.
My mother also worked outside the home as a legal stenographer and court
reporter for the Clinton County Common Pleas Court. My dad is gone now and my
mother, Joann Chamberlin, is the elected Clerk of Courts of Clinton County, a
position she has held for many years. From my family I learned the value of
diligence and hard work and from my mother especially the appreciation of a life
spent in public service.
Probably because of my mother's
involvement with the court system, I decided early in life to become an
attorney. I have had a lifelong interest in all matters concerning justice and
how it is or could be achieved in society. I have studied the diversity of
religious experience, evolving ideas of justice and the laws various societies
have enacted to achieve their beliefs and convictions and pursued this interest
at Yale University, obtaining a Master of Divinity degree before going to law
school. I earned my law degree at Notre Dame Law School, where I graduated cum
laude and was honored by being made the Managing Director of the Notre Dame Law
Review. After graduation I was chosen to become a Law Clerk for Judge Boyce F.
Martin, Jr. of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, which includes
Ohio. This two year work experience gave me first-hand knowledge of what it
means to be an appeals judge. After serving with Judge Martin I went on to
become an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in South Bend, Indiana and was a felony
trial attorney, handling an average caseload of 100-120 felony cases. Following
my stay in Indiana and my husband’s retirement from a full-time medical
practice, my husband and I decided to return to Ohio to raise our son near
family. I was fortunate enough to be able to continue serving the public as an
assistant prosecutor in Clinton County, Ohio, handling township and government
agency matters (including the Veterans Service Commission) and also representing
the state in juvenile, child support and appellate matters. At the present time
I am serving as the Executive Assistant to the Mayor of Wilmington, Clinton
County’s county seat. This position involves working directly with the Mayor to
carry out executive and legislative decision-making in all the departments that
serve the public, including police, fire and rescue, sanitation, water, sewer,
zoning, parks and recreation, and transportation. Personally, I am a wife and
mother to Michael and am involved in many parent activities – school-related
activities, sports, music and academic lessons, etc. My husband, Patrick
Gentile, MD, is the CEO and Medical Director for Community Care Hospice, located
in Clinton County which services many communities in the Miami Valley.
I believe my experience working
for a judge on an appellate court, my criminal law experience as a
deputy/assistant prosecutor, and my executive and managerial background in the
operational, legal, financial and other issues facing local government and our
communities makes me an excellent candidate for the judicial seat on the Court
of Appeals for the Twelfth District. I will serve with the qualities of hard
work and fairness that were instilled in me by my family and that I live by
today. I thank you for taking time to learn about me and ask for your vote at
the general election on November 4.
12th District Court
of Appeals Judge---Bruce Carter
www.carterforappeals.com
Bruce
Carter's Background
✓ Worked to put
himself through school
✓ Represented thousands of injured workers in Ohio and
nationwide
✓ Only candidate licensed in Ohio, West
Virginia,
Pennsylvania, and Texas
✓ Former teacher,
photographer and journalist
✓ Navy Veteran
✓ Son of Navy
veteran, grandson of farmer and union pipefitter
✓ Married to Michele,
former teacher, Court Appointed Special Advocate and Guardian Ad Litem for
abused and neglected children
✓ Daughters Leah and Maya
✓
Understands and cares about problems of working men and women
✓ Will
listen to
You
★ Bruce
Carter's Goals & Values
★ Tough
on Crime and Public Corruption
★ Strength, Empathy &
Responsibility
★ Protecting Our Rights while Protecting
Society
★ Fairness to All Regardless of Size or Prominence in the
Community
★ Protecting the Freedoms our Forefathers created and our
Parents Fought to Preserve
★ Strengthening our Community
★
Providing Public Service Dedicated to Trust, Honesty & Open Communication
★ Providing a Better Future for All of Us, Not just for a Few of
Us
★ Giving you an Honest and Effective Government
and Truly
Balanced Court
★ Fair, Honest, Experienced
Clinton County
Commissioner---Terri Thobaben
www.voteterri.com
I was
raised in northwestern Ohio. My parents were teachers and we lived simply but
well. As educators, my parents felt it important to instill in my brother,
sister and I a strong sense of responsibility to family and community, a
disciplined work ethic and a belief in the power of love and
compassion.
In 2005, I retired from a 31 year career working with young people as a
biology teacher. My education
included a Bachelor of Science degree from Ohio State University and a Masters
degree in education from the University of Cincinnati. Over the years, I have
taught Biology, Chemistry, Anatomy, Astronomy and Physical Science.
In my various teaching positions I have been honored with the Tandy
Teacher of the Year Award and the Howard L. Post Award as the most influential
teacher. I have also coached a
successful team for the Science Olympiad for the past 13 years. My leadership
positions have included local building representative, state and national
assembly representative, local president and negotiating team
member.
I have a strong commitment to public service. I now serve as the president of the Clinton County
Board of Health and am very concerned about the quality of life in our County. I
understand how development can both negatively and positively impact the health
of Clinton Countians.
My husband and I live on a farm outside of Clarksville where we have raised two sons, cared for animals and planted
crops for more than 25 years. The county has long offered a great balance of
town and country living. We think it's a truly great place to
live.
Two of my children currently serve in the military. Chris is a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marines and
Nathan is a third year cadet at West Point. Chris is getting married in October,
so I am also mother of the groom. We know that Chris may well be called to serve
overseas, possibly in Iraq.
My vision for the future of Clinton County is a change of
direction. I want growth but
“smart growth.” I believe sprawl should be limited and development should
occur close to existing community services to use taxpayer’s money most
effectively. Farmland needs to be preserved or we will lose some of the best
farmland in Clinton County. The quality of the air we breathe and the water we
drink should be protected as well. I believe the services you expect from
county government should be of the highest quality we can provide to our
citizens within a fiscally responsible budget.
Let's look forward. Ideas and practices that worked
in the past will not meet the challenges ahead. I am prepared to bring new
ideas and a fresh perspective to the Board of Commissioners.
I
hope that you support and share my vision for a better Clinton
County.
Ohio Supreme Court Justice---Joseph
Russo
www.judgerussoforjustice.com
Serving 8th year as Judge, Court of Common Pleas
Extensive courtroom experience handling over 7,000 civil and
criminal matters
Received perfect score and rating of Excellent from the Judicial
Candidates and Rating Coalition in 2006
Presided over seven death penalty cases
As an attorney in private practice, Joe Russo worked to help
families that had suffered catastrophic injuries caused by manufacturing and
workplace negligence
Ohio Supreme Court Justice---Peter M.
Sikora
