GOP should go with Roegner for state treasurer

Republicans should back state Sen. Kristina Roegner to replace term-limited Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague. During an endorsement interview, Roegner, who lives in Hudson, impressed us as someone who would take the role of treasurer seriously and has the experience to do the job well. She serves as vice chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, which focuses heavily on taxation. The treasurer is responsible for collecting taxes and fees, managing the state's books and overseeing its investments, among other duties. Although she has been a reliably conservative vote during her lengthy tenure in the Statehouse — in addition to serving in the Senate since 2019, she served eight years in the Ohio House — Roegner correctly recognized that the treasurer's job is largely apolitical. "The Treasurer's Office is not very policy heavy," she said, although she noted that whoever holds the job, he or she must be able to work with other elected officials. Roegner also told us that integrity is a vital part of being treasurer. Ohioans need to be able to trust that the figures coming out of the Treasurer's Office are accurate and haven't been tweaked for political reasons. Sprague likewise largely embraced the apolitical nature of being treasurer. (He's been far more partisan in his campaign for Ohio secretary of state. We endorsed him in the GOP primary in that contest.) Roegner previously worked as a management consultant and served on Hudson City Council. Her working knowledge of local government would be an asset. Although we haven't necessarily agreed with many of Roegner's positions over the years, we did like what she had to say about a couple of key issues that she would likely deal with as treasurer. For example, she told us she wanted control of the state's unclaimed funds to be shifted from the Ohio Department of Commerce to the Treasurer's Office. She said she would work to help return that money to Ohioans. She also told us she had opposed using $600 million in unclaimed funds to help pay for the Browns' new stadium. Additionally, Roegner expressed skepticism of the idea of pouring Ohioans' money into cryptocurrency, which she described to us as "too volatile." Roegner's opponent in the Republican primary is former state Rep. Jay Edwards of Nelsonville. We reached out to Edwards multiple times through his campaign website but never heard back. Edwards, who left office at the end of 2024, served four terms in the Ohio House, including a stint as chair of the House Finance Committee during his final term. That experience would likely prove useful as state treasurer. He was among those who backed House Bill 6, the electric-utility bailout bill at the heart of the massive corruption scandal that led to the conviction of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder, R-Glenford. The Columbus Dispatch reported that Edwards hadn't been accused of wrongdoing in the case. (Roegner told us she was out of the country when the Senate took up HB 6, but likely wouldn't have voted in favor of it.) Edwards later voted against expelling Householder from the House, according to The Ohio Capital Journal. He also was one of the co-called "Blue 22," Republicans who broke with their party to join Democrats in electing state Rep. Jason Stephens, R-Kitts Hill, as House speaker in 2023. We have never bought the argument, advanced by some Republicans, that Stephens was some sort of secret Democrat. Rather, he outmaneuvered then-state Rep. Derek Merrin, his GOP rival for the speakership. (Stephens later relinquished the role to now-Speaker Matt Huffman, R-Lima.) Edwards made a similar point to The Dispatch this month, saying that Stephens was "one of the most conservative speakers we've had in the state." Republican voters also should be aware that the state GOP declined to endorse either Edwards or Roegner in the primary contest. (We imagine the party will back the Republican in the fall against Cincinnati City Councilman Seth Walsh, the Democratic candidate for treasurer. Walsh doesn't have a primary opponent.) The lack of a party endorsement appears to be the result of a split among high-ranking Ohio Republicans over who to back in the race. Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, who almost certainly will be the GOP's gubernatorial candidate in the fall, endorsed Roegner, The Capital Journal reported. Vice President J.D. Vance and U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Avon, endorsed Edwards. Perhaps Edwards could have won our endorsement as well, but if he won't sit down with us and answer questions of interest to our readers, we aren't going to endorse him. Besides, Roegner is a strong candidate. Republican voters should put her through to the general election.