http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=2783219COLUMBUS (AP) -- The state's chief elections officer, already accused of mishandling the presidential vote in Ohio and criticized for backing President Bush, sent a fund-raising letter for his 2006 gubernatorial campaign in which he asks for illegal corporate contributions.
Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell, a Republican who co-chaired the Bush-Cheney campaign in Ohio, said the request for corporate checks in a letter to GOP donors and activists was an oversight. His spokesman, Carlo LoParo, said on Saturday that any corporate donations would be returned.
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Blackwell's letter also praises Republicans for helping deliver Ohio to Bush. Ohio pushed Bush over the top in the race for president. U.S. Rep. John Conyers, a Democrat from Michigan who prepared a report on election problems in Ohio, said the letter supports suspicions that Blackwell's actions as secretary of state during the election "stemmed from partisan political motivations" to help Bush.
Conyers said in a statement that the letter "evidences Secretary Blackwell's poor judgment at best, and the manipulation of election administration for partisan purposes, at worst."
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Dontcha just love the party of 'Personal Responsibility?'