Thank you, Berea News readers, for allowing me to introduce myself! 

My name is Bride Rose Sweeney, and I am excited to be running to represent the City of Berea in the Ohio House of Representatives. For the last four years, I have served as a State Representative for the Westside and fought for good schools, safe streets, and a strong economy that rewards hard work. Due to redistricting, Berea is in an open, very competitive seat and there will be an election on August 2^nd  to choose who will run in November. I’m proud to have earned the endorsement of the Cleveland Plain Dealer from its nonpartisan, independent editorial board; the Ohio Education Association representing Ohio’s teachers, and the Cleveland Building Trades Council, which is a strong voice for working people across Cuyahoga County and Northeast Ohio. I hope to earn your support as well as I continue to knock on doors throughout our beautiful Berea community.  

Ohio needs more leaders who are committed to finding real solutions to the problems we face,
not finding more ways to divide us.  I’ve had success, passing nine bills in four years as
Democrat in a Republican super-majority legislature.  Some of those bills include legislation to
ensure prompt payment of contract workers, protection for nurses being forced into excessive
overtime, and a reform to make it easier for our students to transfer college credits between
schools, making it easier for our kids to graduate and incur less debt. 

As the lead sponsor of the Fair School Funding Plan, I built on a five-year bipartisan effort and
succeeded in finally overhauling Ohio’s broken and unconstitutional school funding formula.
Berea City Schools will gain more than $3.8 million from the plan once it is fully funded,
helping to reduce over-reliance on property taxes that hurt our seniors the most. 

As your Representative, I hope to continue using my experience to do the real and challenging work of state government. Two different Minority Leaders selected me to lead the powerful Ohio House Finance Committee, which oversees our $70 billion operating budget.  I also serve as your fiscal watchdog on the State Controlling Board, overseeing millions in state contracts, and I am the only woman currently appointed to that body. 

We have been through so much over the last few years, as we endure a deadly pandemic that upended our lives. In the last year alone, my office worked with thousands of constituents across Cuyahoga County on everything from helping small businesses adapt and remain open to slashing through red tape for those out of work. As we look toward a post-pandemic future, we need to ensure everyone can live in a thriving, safe community like Berea. Everyone deserves a chance to go to college or trade school and to go on to work a good-paying job that reflects the dignity of their work. Ohio can do so much more to make that a reality. 

With your support, I will continue standing up against harmful policies from Columbus while delivering tangible results for Cuyahoga County. Given my proven track record, experience, and dedication to public service, I hope that you will consider supporting me in the August 2^nd Democratic Primary. It is the honor of my life to serve as a State Representative for the people of the Westside, and I would be so grateful to have your support. 

Yours Truly, 
 
State Representative Bride Rose Sweeney

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