Friday, January 01, 1999

Ohio gets first female governor

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But Hollister's historic role will be short-lived

BY MICHAEL HAWTHORNE
Enquirer Columbus Bureau

Nancy Hollister is sworn in Thursday as Ohio's first female governor. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        COLUMBUS — Soon after Nancy Hollister was sworn in Thursday as Ohio's first female governor, she made it clear that her brief stint will mostly be symbolic and ceremonial.

        Speakers at her swearing-in ceremony repeatedly reminded onlookers about the historic nature of the occasion.

        But barring a natural disaster, the Marietta Republican won't have much official business to carry out during her 11-day tenure.

        “I will make no initiatives, I will commute no sentences, and I will propose no legislation,” she told government officials and family members packed into the Statehouse atrium to watch her recite the oath of office as the state's 66th chief executive.

        She got the job because former Gov. George Voinovich resigned early to take a seat in the U.S. Senate. Ms. Hollister, who had been lieutenant governor, will fill in until Gov.-elect Bob Taft is sworn in Jan. 11.

        Perks include a pay raise of nearly 100 percent, to $57.32 an hour from the $28.78 an hour she was making as lieutenant governor. She also gets to stay in the Governor's Residence in suburban Bexley, where she planned to celebrate New Year's Eve with family and friends.

        Gender equity was a constant theme during the day's events, which were presided over by Ohio House Speaker Jo Ann Davidson, a Reynoldsburg Republican, the first woman to ascend to one of the General Assembly's top posts.

        Chief Justice of Ohio Thomas Moyer even stepped aside so Justice Evelyn Stratton could administer Ms. Hollister's oath of office.

        One of Ms. Hollister's first tasks as governor was swearing in members of her Cabinet, most of whom are holdovers from the Voinovich administration. They agreed to stay until Mr. Taft takes office.

        She also appointed three judges and five members to boards and commissions, including Tom Needles, Mr. Voinovich's top education aide.

        Ironically, all those appointments went to men.

        Next week will be jammed with ceremonial events, but Mr. Voinovich left one bill for her to sign into law: a measure she helped draft that encourages counties to set aside funds for farmland preservation.

        Meeting with reporters in the governor's Statehouse office, Ms. Hollister recalled meeting with Mr. Voinovich more than four years ago after he had chosen her to be his running mate.

        He reminded her that one of the lieutenant governor's only official duties is taking over if the governor dies, resigns or is removed from office. (The other is presiding over the State and Local Government Commission, a panel that acts as a liaison between state and local elected officials.)

        “You can handle it,” she recalled Mr. Voinovich telling her. “I've never forgotten what he said, and it's something I remembered again today.”

        A descendant of one of Ohio's pioneer families, Ms. Hollister said she hopes her tenure will help clear the way for the state's first elected female governor.

        “I recall some saying it would be a cold day when a woman would become governor of Ohio,” quipped Sen. Robert Cupp, R-Lima, referring to the frigid temperatures outside. “What I'm curious about is, how did they know?”

        Ms. Hollister is the first sitting lieutenant governor to succeed a governor since John W. Brown took over for Frank J. Lausche in 1957. Like Mr. Voinovich, Mr. Lausche had been elected to the U.S. Senate.

        But while the job of lieutenant governor traditionally has been a stepping stone to higher office, Ms. Hollister's next job may be a step down from the governorship.

        After an unsuccessful bid in November for Congress, she indicated she'd like to replace State Rep. Tom Johnson, a New Concord Republican who is resigning to become Mr. Taft's budget director.

        If Ms. Hollister gets the job, she will merit another footnote in Ohio political history by becoming only the second ex-governor since 1840 to serve in the General Assembly. The last one was Mr. Brown.

       

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