Op-Ed:The Special Election Is Our Chance to Vote for Progress – Here’s Why

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect the official policy or position of BR Media Group, LLC.

I think about the popular O’Jay classic when considering the republican leadership and the “conservative” agenda. 

“All the time, they want to take your place. The backstabbers. ” 

With a straight face, they say – family values and offer gifts and grants for pet projects – and with sleight of hand, pass laws and craft policies to erase history and destroy democracy.   

Such is the case of former congressman Bill Johnson, who presents with the face of credibility and sits in a half-million dollar-a-year seat of power atop Youngstown State University. Please don’t forget that he voted with 147 other representatives to overturn the 2020 election, and if it had not been for a few brave souls, he would have succeeded. Johnson is a cog in the big wheel of republican injustice, and they ALL go along with the plan. 

This is why we must watch every election closely. All politics is local, but when the locals swim in the murky waters, we are all in danger of drowning.

Case in point: Mike Rulli, a senator and local grocery store owner, is running as a Republican to fill the seat of Bill Johnson. He is a nice guy. You see him in the grocery store, and he smiles. But he also co-sponsored the bill to erase Black History.  I asked him in this opinion piece if he was selling rotten fruit in the Ohio General Assembly.  

There is no doubt that if he gets to Congress, like Bill Johnson before him, he will go along with the “conservative” plan, which includes not certifying a duly won election. The 6th congressional district has been manipulated to make it easy for a Republican to win. 

We have an opportunity to message the planners that we, the people, do not favor their extreme MAGA plan. Youngstown voters can unite around Mike Kripchak and send a Democrat to Congress to represent our values. Kripchak has a strong resume and a clear message that rebuts the anti-democracy agenda currently at work in the party of the past.

Conservative means status quo, resisting change and pushing back against progress. As tepid as it sounds, when one puts on a suit, tie, and smile, anyone can be drawn into the belief that “conservative” is not so bad, maybe even good.  

Conservatives have, for too long, smiled in our faces while stabbing us in the back. They’ve used everything from the Bible to bullhorns to bullets in the past. More recently, they’ve used voter purges, anti-woke laws, and abortion restrictions to persuade and control the public into compliance.  

For Mahoning Valley residents, this is a call to action.

June 11, 2024, is a Special Election (check your registration here). Part of the conservative agenda includes purging voter rolls. So, if your address has changed, you have not voted in two years, your name is incorrectly spelled, or there is a typo on your record, “the agenda” seeks to silence your voice by stealing your vote.  

The registration deadline is May 13, 2024, at 9 pm (EST), and early voting begins May 14, 2024. Tell everyone you know to vote, register now, and vote early. We can shock the MAGA planners and turn those smiles into frowns when we win that seat and put 30,000 votes in the Mike Kripchak, democrat, column.

About the author: Dr. M. Mike McNair is an ACPE Psychotherapist, LISW-S, and columnist. A political commentator for WFMJ-Ch-21 TV’s Press Pass and president of the Ohio Black Media Collective.  [email protected]