Buckeye Reporter

Gubernatorial primary candidate Jim Renacci is putting the blame for Ohio’s outmigration on Gov. Mike DeWine.

Renacci, a businessman and former U.S. representative, is facing DeWine in the Ohio May 3 Republican primary. He said DeWine’s policies have killed hundreds of thousands of jobs in the state.

“This alarming new data confirms that Mike DeWine is governing Ohio like a blue-state liberal,” Renacci said in a statement. "People should be flocking to Ohio to start a business or raise a family. Instead, they're fleeing Ohio for opportunities in other Republican-led states like Florida or South Dakota.”

A United Van Lines study looking back at 2021 reported that more people left Ohio than moved in last year. According to the report, of all Ohio inbound and outbound movers, total outbound movers totaled 56.3% of all movers in 2021. Inbound movers made up 43.7%. The primary reason given for leaving Ohio was job opportunity.



Small businesses in Ohio have been struggling according to the National Federation of Small Business (NFIB). A recent survey from the Ohio chapter of NFIB detailed key challenges facing Ohio's small businesses including: labor issues, supply chain problems and inflation.

“Ohio already ranks as the worst state in the region to create jobs and businesses, but DeWine has done nothing to fix it," Renacci said. "In fact, his aggressive, job-killing COVID lockdowns made it worse. As Governor, I will make Ohio competitive again and make our state's business and tax climate one of the best in the nation. I am confident Ohio's best days are ahead of us, but that starts with retiring Mike DeWine and pursuing a true conservative agenda.”

Renacci, 63, is an accountant and businessman who once owned the Arena Football League's Columbus Destroyers. As part of the Tea Party movement, he was elected to Congress in 2010 and later endorsed Donald Trump against then-Ohio Governor John Kasich in the 2016 GOP presidential primaries.