At the Ohio Democratic Party Primary Night celebration, Cuyahoga County Executive and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ed FitzGerald shared with family, friends, and supporters that his campaign will be about making Ohio work for everyone.

*****REMARKS AS PREPARED*****

First, I want to acknowledge my family and this strong team of Democrats who are running on this ticket, especially Sharen Neuhardt who is an incredible running mate.

When I started this campaign over a year ago, I did so because of very real disagreements with the direction Governor Kasich is taking Ohio.

On so many issues, Governor Kasich has led Ohio in the wrong direction, and over the last year, I’ve had hundreds of conversations with the people affected by his policies that don’t help Ohio’s working families but instead cost them more.

After traveling all across Ohio I have an even clearer understanding of how things have gone off track in Ohio, and why.

Ohio is being run by an administration that is dedicated to serving a small, privileged group of people, and ordinary Ohioans have been left out and stuck with the bill.

The most basic question an elected official must answer is “who do you work for.” And it is apparent now for all to see that John Kasich is representing millionaires and billionaires, and telling working families if the top is doing well, then you will eventually.

It doesn’t work that way.

It works when middle class families are strong and have confidence in the future.

And under John Kasich they don’t.

As Governor, I will make it clear who I will wake up everyday ready to fight for.

It is all of those people who have been left out, are on the other side of the wall,

All of those who haven’t been invited to John Kasich’s “miracle” economy,

We’re going to speak up for you

If you’re one of the almost 50% of Ohioans who are living paycheck to paycheck, I will be speaking up for you.

If you’re one of 10% of Ohioans making a minimum wage, I’ll be speaking up for you.

If you’re one of the workers who John Kasich belittled and tried to take away your rights during Senate Bill 5, I spoke up for you then, and I will again.

And our educators, who John Kasich has ignored and blames, I will be speaking up for you and the children you work every day to educate.

Those seniors whose sales tax went up and Homestead Exemption was taken away, we’ll be speaking up for you.

And thousands of police officers, firefighters, veterans or other public safety workers, we will respect your service.

And if you’re a worker at a place like Ormet, where you not only lost your job, but had a governor who still refuses to meet or even talk with you, I will be speaking up for you, but also listening to you, as I did when I met with a delegation of Ormet workers earlier today.

Everyone I mentioned – that is who I will wake up ready to work for, listen to, and speak for, and those are the people who keep all of us motivated to keep fighting.

The case against John Kasich’s destructive policies is strong.

But I have a vision for a new Ohio and it is an Ohio that works for everyone.

It starts with inclusiveness, embracing diversity, making voting easier not more difficult, saying if you love someone that government has no voice if you should marry, and that what happens between a doctor and her patient is not at all a place for a governor to interfere

In the coming weeks we will be laying out a more specific agenda. Not just what Ohio shouldn’t be, but what Ohio can be.

It starts with a plan to educate our children to compete in the 21st century economy, to promote a safer Ohio, how we can wisely reinvest in our hometown communities, to making  college much more affordable, to ensuring Ohio has the strongest k-12 education system in America, and an agenda for urban revitalization and opportunity

We will focus on how Ohio can be a leader in innovation and how we grow our state businesses while attracting new investment.

This fight will not be easy.  The other side plays hard because they like what John Kasich has given them.

But the good news is that as bad as this administration has been, the people of Ohio themselves are better.

And in 181 days, we’ll have the state Ohioans deserve.

Thank you