BY MICHAEL D. CLARK
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Warren County voters in Ohio's 2nd House District next month will choose between former county commissioners as their state representative. Republican incumbent George Terwilleger faces off against Bob Turner, the Democratic challenger who ran unopposed in his party's spring primary.
Mr. Turner is a 66-year-old industrial trainer who works at AK Steel in Middletown. A Warren County resident since 1952, he said he knows best how to serve the residents of the fast-growing county.
"I'm a certified workaholic," he said.
Mr. Turner, a former Warren County commissioner, said he would work for more training for the chronically unemployed.
"I'd like to see job training expanded in Warren County," said Mr. Turner, a Mason resident who was a commissioner for eight years.
His opponent stressed that he has already been working hard for county residents for years.
"The major difference between us is that I have served Warren County for 18 years," said Mr. Terwilleger, who served as county commissioner for 12 years before being elected to the Ohio House in 1992.
"That gives me the insight into the needs and problems with all the growth we've had," he said of Warren County's status as the second-fastest growing county in Ohio.
He described himself as "proactive on development and growth. . . . I'm a grass-roots person who understands the wants and needs of businesses.
"Infrastructure is our No. 1 problem. And we need more regional planning, with other counties, to solve it," said Mr. Terwilleger, who is chairman of the Ohio House Economic and Development Committee. "Warren will become a part of the megalopolis between Cincinnati and Dayton. We need to start talking about all of Southwest Ohio," he said.
Because of term limits, Mr. Terwilleger is running for his last two-year term.
The 57-year-old Warren County native has built a consistently strong voter base.
He captured 70 percent of the Republican primary vote.
