BY SANDY THEIS
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
COLUMBUS -- Secretary of State Bob Taft, the GOP candidate for governor, may have violated the election laws he is charged to uphold, the Ohio Elections Commission said Thursday.
The panel unanimously ruled there is probable cause that TV commercials for his gubernatorial campaign have misled voters. A full hearing on the complaint is expected in September.
If the commission determines that a violation did occur, it can refer the case for prosecution, issue a reprimand or do nothing. While insisting the spots are legal and not misleading, the Taft campaign tried to distance Mr. Taft and his running mate, Summit County Prosecutor Maureen O'Connor, from the commercials.
"The advertisements were not prepared by the candidates. The campaign committee was entrusted with responsibility" for them, said Taft campaign manager Brian Hicks.
A top aide to Lee Fisher, the Democrat challenging Mr. Taft, called such an argument "incredible."
"The implication is that he never looked at the ads and never approved them," said Fisher campaign chairman Alan Melamed. "If you can't run your own campaigns with 15 or 20 staff people, how are you going to run a government of 50,000 employees?"
Mr. Hicks said Mr. Taft did see the commercial before it aired but Ms. O'Connor did not.
At issue are two versions of the same television commercial that end with this message: "Bob Taft Governor."
Ohio Democratic Party chairman David Leland filed the complaint, which contends that the ad violates two sections of Ohio election law.
One section bans candidates from using "the title of an office not currently held by the candidate in a manner that implies the candidate does currently hold that office." The other prohibits candidates from making false statements.
Beginning Thursday, the Taft campaign changed the ad. It now says, "Bob Taft for Governor."
Democrats argue the change is a tacit admission of wrongdoing. Republicans counter that it is simply an attempt to return the debate to more substantive issues.
The Ohio Republican Party is considering filing a complaint against Mr. Fisher and other Democrats, arguing the Democrats have used similar wording in their campaign pieces, party spokesman Gary Abernathy said.
At issue for Mr. Fisher is a TV ad he aired during the primary season. It ended with a bumper sticker that said, "Lee Fisher Governor." Mr. Melamed said the accompanying script makes it clear that Mr. Fisher is seeking the office of governor -- not currently holding it. The initial Taft spot contained no spoken words, just music and the graphic, "Bob Taft Governor."
Mr. Hicks said if the Taft commercial breaks the law, so does Mr. Fisher's. "It's the height of hypocrisy for them to argue both sides of the same issue," he said.
Yet the issue could be especially embarrassing for Mr. Taft. The Cincinnati Republican is completing his second term as secretary of state, Ohio's chief election officer. His duties include appointing election board members, and preparing rules and instructions for the conduct of campaigns.
In his 1998 Campaign Finance Reporting Handbook, Mr. Taft advises candidates to avoid using "wording that would make someone think that the candidate is the incumbent."
In 1992, the elections commission found Lou Briggs, a candidate for state representative, in violation of the law for a billboard that stated: "Lou Briggs. State Representative. Strong New Leadership." The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, however, ruled in her favor, saying the ad was ambiguous, not false.
