DeWine will remain in the Legislature through the end of 2008.
He talked with Jim Otte of WHIOTV.COM about the new job.
Jim Otte: Why did you want to do this job?
Kevin DeWine: I believe so strongly about the Republican Party, the principles that it is founded on and the things that it stands for. I want to make sure that there is strong leadership and a focus on those principles in the party when Chairman Robert Bennett retires.
Jim Otte: You will still be in the Legislature for the remainder of 2007 and through 2008. Do you plan to step down from your leadership position in the Ohio House?
Kevin DeWine: We will transition out of that leadership position in the House to my new responsibility at the Ohio Republican Party. The timetable for that transition is still in the works. There is a great deal to learn when it comes to operating the multi-million-dollar business that the Ohio Republican Party is. There is a lot of work to do to restore the trust of the voters and advance the ideas that this party believes in.
Jim Otte: When would you take over as state party chairman?
Kevin DeWine: The committee will have another election in January of 2009 to elect a new chairman. Chairman Bennett has chosen not to seek re-election. Presumably I will be in position in January of 2009 to be elected chairman of the Ohio Republican Party.
Jim Otte: Isn’t this the first time that this kind of transition of leadership has been mapped out so far in advance?
Kevin DeWine: It is a credit to the leadership of the party. Chairman Bennett and other leaders of the party recognize that you can’t have the person running the show for 20 years to walk out the door at the end of his term and not provide for some sort of transition. This is succession planning at its best. This gives me 18 months to understand the operation at the headquarters and get around and transition everything, including with those who support our party in order to elect Republicans.
Jim.otte@whiotv.com