Craig Swartz

Craig Swartz was born in Middleburg Heights, Ohio. He earned a high school diploma from Midpark High School, and a bachelor’s degree from Ohio State University in 1980. He also studied at Schiller International University. Swartz’s career experience includes working as an international legal assistant, international legal advisor, restaurant owner, writer, factory worker, insurance agent, and realtor.[1][2]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am the Political Director of the Ohio Public Banking Coalition and I have been working steadily to advance legislation through the General Assembly the last several years that would create a state public bank like the Bank of North Dakota that would be able to over time generate up to $100 Billion in new lending that could transform Ohio's economy and spread the wealth throughout the state.

I've run for office several times before as a Democrat and each time I was soundly defeated due to the gerrymandering of the districts, but also because politics has gotten so toxic that folks are just shutting down when they hear a party label attached to your name. So I decided this time to run as an Indie so people could have a listen to what I have to say and how we can rescue our state.

I'm a 68 year old Realtor who's been married 41 years and we have an adult developmentally disabled son who can live on his own because he was lucky enough to get into a subsidized development. This is important because my wife and I are so concerned about his welfare after we're gone, as well as all the others who so badly need some kind of leg up in the world so they can get by. That's what drives me to run.

To make sure we leave this world in better shape than how we found it.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

It's been 17 years since the Great Recession and Ohio, together with the Country, are facing an enormous shortage in affordable housing. My plan calls for creating a Bank of Ohio, a state public bank like the Bank of North Dakota, that would enable community banks, credit unions and other local banks to get critical funding to areas that desperately need new affordable housing units in order to bring down housing costs for homeowners and renters.Ohioans have many other needs such as affordable childcare that is scarce in the 87th District, and is depriving hardworking parents from fully engaging in the economy and bettering their lives. The Bank of Ohio could provide crucial funding for new childcare start-ups throughout Ohio.The gerrymandered guaranteed super-majority Republican Party hasn't listened to the average Ohioan for nearly 30 years, and that's why public education has suffered and public corruption has soared. It's why public town halls disappeared replaced by photo ops, and widely shared values on civility, education, privacy, reproductive health care and voting are dismissed out-of-hand entirely. It's time we take back our state, Ohio!

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Public banking on both a state and national level. We need to bring back FDR style programs to rejuvenate our entire economy, top to bottom.

Public education must be fully funded and a new, fairer system to financially support it and that means public education must come off from property taxes for support replaced with an income tax- based revenue source.

JobsOhio.org must be dismantled and all liquor revenues put back into the General Fund. The original Department of Development can be restored to being in charge of of soliciting business development in Ohio and under the supervision of the Governor.

Craig Swartz did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

Craig Swartz did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign website

Swartz's campaign website stated the following:

The All-American Tax Act

Being smarter about taxes is not just saying we’ll cut taxes, it is about an honest and transparent conversation about where our tax dollars will be spent.

It is also widely accepted that some form of taxation must exist to pay for goods and services that are enjoyed by the public at large and which contribute to their safety and security in their homes and communities.

Our country’s founding and continued existence is filled with examples of citizens largely fighting against excessive taxation either on a personal or community level or resentment against segments of the populace that are not paying their share of taxes .

My proposed All-American Tax Act would return Over $300/month to average working Americans

Women's Choice & Freedom

Women's Health Choices Matter

Nearly 1 in 4 women in the US will have an abortion by age 45. Abortion is healthcare and people making their own healthcare decisions is within their rights to do so. Upholding the right for women to choose what is best for their health, not the government is a core value of my campaign.

Nearly 1 in 4 women in the US will have an abortion by age 45

Even though the GOP likes to claim it's the party of small government, it really is the party of big government. From introducing legislation to jail doctors for providing abortions to creating bounties on anyone suspected of helping women get their healthcare. These regulations target women with the hand of big government. It's hypocritical for a party to do these things and say they're the party of small government.

People have the right to choose their form of birth control and any effort to that interferes in the relationship between a person and their doctor should be blocked.

LGBTQ Community

I believe the values I grew up with are still possible despite today’s toxic politics. My values inform my view on LGBTQ equality and the unique issues that community faces in our district.

Don’t Say Gay Bills

Republicans in states like Florida and now Ohio have introduced “Dont say gay” laws that tell our teachers to ignore our children’s needs. My campaign is opposed to bills which would cause harm to our LGBTQ kids by further stigmatizing them.

Trans Kids Deserve to Play Sports

Every kid deserves to play sports consistent with their gender identity. Last year 66 bills across the country were introduced to discriminate against trans youth in sports. This attack on our kids is an effort to create a new boogeyman in politics just as gay marriage was in the early 2000’s. It’s wrong and I don’t support it.

LGBTQ Healthcare

Healthcare is a basic right for everyone. That includes our LGBTQ youth who’ve seen at least 33 bills last year denying them gender affirming healthcare. Some of these laws even aim to punish parents of trans kids who help their children get the healthcare they need in order to thrive and live as they are.

Voting Rights

The Cause goes on

There is no greater duty for Americans than voting. Voting is the one sure way of voicing our opinions by electing those to office we believe best to represent our ideals and values. Voting is one of those sacred rights in America that is precious to so many, but was not given to everyone. That’s why our country had to change from when only a few could vote to the many who now can.

But voting is under attack today more than ever by state and federal lawmakers who want to make it harder for Americans to vote. We are seeing updated forms of Jim Crow era laws making it harder for folks to vote, districts where lawmakers pick their voters and People losing their vote due to voter purges because they choose not to vote in a prior election.. These restrictions are a way for those in power to remain in power by putting party over country and it is costing us our freedom.

Democracy is hard work and it is never-ending for citizens to make sure their civil rights are being protected by the very people they vote into office. Even in the 21st Century the Cause must go on to ensure voting rights for everyone and fair and representative voting districts.

Passing Federal Voting Rights

One of the main reasons the Framers decided to ditch the Articles of Confederation in favor of The Constitution was that the 13 states had 13 different ways of doing just about everything. The Constitution unified coinage, interstate commerce, a single postal system and Navy but it left voting to the states which leaves us with 50 different ways of voting in local, state and federal elections. It is about time we came up with a standardized set of voting requirements that allows for the fullest participation by its eligible citizens.

Passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the House-passed Voting Rights Act is essential at getting rid of states’ ill-advised attempts at limiting the people’s rights to vote, and standardizing best voting practices across all 50 states.

Gerrymandering must stop

Gerrymandering is a process where politicians decide who their voters are going to be for the next ten years. In Ohio for example, the GOP drew our districts in 2011 in such a way that not one district flipped party control in the ten years they were used even though our state voted for both President Obama and Trump twice.

States are dragging their feet at drawing new district maps after the 2020 census. Voters in many states demanded fair maps, like in Ohio, but like Ohio many states have failed or refused to comply with the People’s voice and are stalling for time in the courts based on bad faith attempts at designing fair districts.

Our Environment

Accepting our Role

It doesn’t matter if you believe in man made climate change or not because the truth is, people exist, interact with their environment and usually leave a mess, so it is up to each of us to do our part and leave our piece of the garden better off than the way we got it.

People will say that the Earth has gone through climate changes many times before but all that really matters is this time not then. Back then, there weren’t hundreds of millions of cars and trucks spewing fumes in the air, 8 billion people building mountains of waste daily or thousands of factories polluting waterways. All the garbage we put into the land, sea and air is on every single one of us.

We can be better just by accepting our role in leaving behind a better environment, and voting for those candidates who support measures to help clean things up. Growing up I spent time as a Boy Scout and after every weekend camp, we’d line shoulder to shoulder and police our area, leaving it better than when we arrived. This needs to be our attitude going forward.

My campaign accepts that humanity has a great responsibility ensuring that the environment is fully protected from generation to generation, and the role of the U.S. as a world leader setting an example.

Protecting the Land

There is no other option here. We must learn to respect the ground beneath us and take care as to its use above. We will always need regulations that make sure we reduce harm to our land resources as much as possible, holding violators accountable, and restoring it back to a good use.

The Build Back Better had programs designed to help communities revamp neighborhoods, demolish condemned buildings and create new open spaces for public use and enjoyment. As your Congressman, I will be committed to seeing legislation of this kind passed so as to speed up the rebirth of small towns across Ohio and the Country.

It is important we keep encouraging best practices by our farmer industry in making sure that toxins are being reduced in the soil to lessen runoff that pollute our waterways. My plan is to promote the use of hemp as an alternative cash crop for farmers to be planted as borders between corn and soy plantings and waterways. Hemp is known to absorb toxins in the ground caused by fertilizers and pesticides and this would lessen runoff.

Water is Life

Even after the disaster in Flint, Americans are left wondering why we’re still not doing it enough to save our water resources. Part of our national security is to provide clean, fresh water to all of its citizens so all communities can thrive and live healthy.

There must be a renewed emphasis on getting our watchdog agencies, like the EPA, the resources they need to make sure our water resources are protected.

The Air We Breathe

Probably the most important resource of all is the very air around us and how this one resource affects us all. Air has no boundaries so what one person puts in the air can have an immediate effect on a person nearby. So, imagine a single country putting toxins in the air from burning fossil fuels and now think of the world doing it for over a century and a half.

Improving carbon capture methods from extraction and emissions must be one of our major tasks ahead. Cleaning up our air is going to help our land and water resources just making sure the rain and snow that fall on them are that much cleaner.

Immigration

It is way past time that the U.S. developed a better approach to immigration that will help our communities thrive and our labor economy become more stable. We need an efficient and modern way of handling immigrants desiring to enter the U.S. for either asylum or economic reasons.

Our history with immigration started badly enough and even after all this time has rarely been done in a good way. The early colonizers regarded themselves above everyone else, including Native Americans, even though they were immigrants too. They brought servants and slaves with them and soon enough racism was born in America. A growing and hungry country would overlook the bigotry and prejudice that greeted each wave of immigrants and keep expanding opportunities for all of them, except for the former slaves.

Nowadays, immigrants are once again seen in a negative manner and the U.S. government is hampered by politics to do anything about it. The Pandemic has made things worse by slowing migration and keeping people stuck at borders. Also, our own foreign policies have caused thousands to escape brutal conditions in their home countries and seek asylum here hoping to restore some dignity in their shattered lives.

Dealing with Reality

We have three groups of immigrants that need to addressed; those who are undocumented living in the U.S., Dreamers and those still waiting to enter the U.S. The immediate concern for lawmakers is to get everyone who is presently in our borders documented as quickly as possible. We should know the number of people who need documents to live and work in the U.S. and for Dreamers to be secure in their future here.

We need to expand our processing centers so they are able to handle unexpected surges in immigration requests and treat all who seek entry with compassion and dignity.

Examining our Foreign Policies

The U.S. must review its foreign policies, especially toward Central America, which contributes to massive waves of immigrants fleeing torture, death and extreme poverty at the hands of their governments.

Promoting human rights and reducing violence wherever we can will help address the root causes of migration such as repression, starvation and war and it will save lives.

Two Approaches with a Single Purpose

The U.S. has a large, potential workforce that couldn’t come at a better time. The Pandemic has left huge gaps in the labor ranks for a number of industries and so it is in the best interests of government and industry to work together to replenish these jobs as soon as possible.

The U.S. could revamp its immigration processing in two ways. First, expand the temporary guest worker program to speed up the number of immigrants who may only want to work in the U.S. for a specified time period without gaining citizenship. Second, create a new pathway to citizenship that is reasonable in its requirements especially when it comes to a waiting period.

Energy At Home

100% U.S. Made Energy

The U.S. is again one of the world’s leading natural gas and oil producers yet it still imports foreign oil on a daily basis and that’s why we need to get 100% of our own needs right here and right now.

As of today, renewables account for approximately 10% of America’s energy sources. If we increase that just up to 20% in the next several years, a lot of the oil politics that dominate our news cycles and affect us personally may be a thing of the past. Fossil fuels, like the name suggests, come from remains from long ago and whose own extinction may now be in sight.

Our future lies in constantly moving forward with ways to reduce our dependency on others, producing all the power we need here at home and removing our heavy, carbon footprint on the Earth.

Let’s Transition Now

Natural Gas Opportunities

We are still going to need natural gas for a while and there are ways of getting it out of the ground other than just fracking. Natural gas from sources, such as landfills, is referred to as renewable natural gas and can be a great alternative.

We can do much more at this level while new ways to carbon capture can further reduce methane emissions and be safer on the environment.

Communities Should Benefit

A carbon tax on the oil and gas industry will help put money back into communities most affected from oil and gas projects. These funds will also help communities in the long run transition away from fossil fuels.

Reforming How We Use Energy

States, like Ohio, need to increase their solar power future and they can do this by speeding up and reforming the permit approval process. Solar farms in our counties are seeing political push-back because of the hold the fossil fuel industry still has on our leaders.

These projects give our farmers rental income, thousands of construction jobs as well as hundreds of permanent jobs are made in rural areas and the farmland gets some badly needed rest.

Green Travel for Americans

It is important that we do our part to help reduce our need for fossil fuels and start using renewables for our transportation purposes. Congress should encourage this growth in both the private and public sectors.

Large fleets such freight companies, public transit buses and waste management have switched to compressed natural gas (CNG) engines which burn cleaner than diesel and need much less maintenance. In time, many of these same fleets will be switching to all-electrics.

Increasing electrically powered mass transit use with buses, trains and cars will not only help reduce emissions but give Americans more travel options for work and fun.

Righting the Energy Wrongs

The U.S. cannot afford to continue to bail out aging coal and nuclear plants and with no plan to stop doing so. Taxpayers have been paying for years for politicians to keep kicking this can down the road and it needs to stop.

Creating a national energy plan, which has never been done right, will help us transition off coal sooner rather than later and put a timeline on natural gas as well. A national energy plan will finally establish a national repository for all nuclear waste in the country.

Another Ohio Fuel Source

Northeast Ohio leads research in hydrogen fuel cells that use natural gas. Hydrogen fuel cells are going to be critical for energy storage and transportation industries for cars, trucks, trains and even spacecraft. Recently, Hyperion, a hydrogen fuel company, announced it’s moving to Columbus from California.

Liquid hydrogen is the fuel of choice for heavy lift purposes and can be extracted from methane (CH4). We have an enormous opportunity to provide the raw materials for these growing industries and use these resources to finance its own transformation.

Our Local Economies Matter Too

Reversing 40 years of Negligence

U.S. Labor is at a critical time in its history and it will be up to the government to help protect workers’ rights as they organize to demand better pay and working conditions.

The Pandemic period has brought out into the open what the last 40 years of neglect by government and industry leaders have done to our economy and workforce. The mad push for shareholder profits outsourced millions of good-paying jobs and destroyed communities. As a result, we have increased child mortality, domestic violence, drug use, poverty and suicide in our towns.

There is no doubt today that a skilled workforce and dependable domestic supply chain are a vital part of our national security.

Let's Build Back Labor

If the U.S. economy is going to succeed for all, labor will play an important role. The Biden Administration got key legislation passed that will rebuild our infrastructure and supply chains but much more needs to be done. We need new funding to transform our local and national economies by helping millions of workers realize a new American dream for their future.

Congress can help by passing laws that increase opportunities for trade skill education, boost employee buy-ins for new manufacturing industries, rehab thousands from prison, fixes immigration and enhances employment for the disabled.

Unions

The world’s greatest economy was built by labor demanding and getting good pay for their work. Unions created the middle class and gave the next generation a hopeful future, but politicians ignored workers and sided with business in tearing down unions.

Unions are making a comeback though because everyone knows that trade skills must be maintained and expanded to get our economy on the right track. Unions are the best way for organizing and training the future of workers.

Restoring dignity among workers, regardless if they are non-union or union, needs to be a top priority for lawmakers as this will lead to better working conditions, better living standards and strong communities.

Foreign Affairs

Congress Needs Get its Power Back

When it comes to our national security, Congress needs to start having an honest conversation with the American people about defense spending and how we conduct foreign policy. The Founders put Congress in charge of defense and foreign policy of the country. Over time though, most of that power was handed over to the President by Congress. Congress may still decide how much to pay for it, but the President is still calling all the shots. Congress rarely asks questions and approves most actions by Presidents who have conducted secret operations, entered into international agreements, fast-tracked trade agreements and implemented tariffs, all without Congressional sign off.

As your Congressman, I will be always truthful with you and ask the people directly how they see the role of America in the world, and how much needs to be spent supporting that role.

After 9/11, Congress passed legislation giving power to the President that went further than any in the past. Since 2001, because of those actions, thousands of lives were lost and broken, trillions spent with little transparency and no questioning of it by Congress.

Peace Remains Elusive

The crisis in Ukraine shows us once again how finding peace remains hard work but if Americans want peace, then we must do our part too. Our U.S. military drops bombs in at least five countries, operates special forces in over a hundred all while our diplomats are interfering in elections overseas.

The never-ending cycles of violence the U.S. plays a role in around the world has prevented Americans from achieving what peace we’ve been promised every time we prepared for war. The constant war footing consumes our resources, divides us and makes peace that much harder to obtain.

Instead of resolving conflicts, we are creating future fiascos that will put Americans in harm’s way. Congress needs to start asking the hard questions, closely examine defense spending and assert a peaceful and proactive foreign policy.

Steps Toward Real National Security

National Security means more than just money spent on equipment and troops for the preparation and prevention of war, it also means the readiness of the American people to support such actions.

The Pandemic showed that our national defense must have a stable and strong domestic supply chain network. Americans are feeling confused, distrustful and showing hate, and that is hurting our ability to work together in solving our problems.

Our Country’s budget needs new priorities that focus on domestic issues such as newer, cleaner sources of energy, stronger infrastructure, efficient transit and plentiful clean water. Congress needs to act with better ideas and long-term plans on strengthening our domestic economy which contributes to our national security.

The U.S. remains a beacon to the rest of the world because every year thousands risk their lives to come here, but it’s also because our actions put these same thousands at risk in the first place. The U.S. needs to stop interfering in other countries, like in Central America, and work closely with other countries in solving difficult, long-term problems such as the Middle East.

The American People need to tell Congress how they see the U.S.’s role in our world. Our defense budget must reflect the will of the People. This approach to our defense and foreign policy will better serve our troops, save lives and property and will promote peace.

The International Day of Peace occurs on September 21 of each year and calls for no fighting for just one day. As your Congressman, I will draft legislation that expands this observance to include a stop to any financial transactions concerning arms trading, shipment and deployment and push for an International Truce Week as a simple step toward building a more peaceful future.

Ohio's Education

Whether College or Trade, Common Sense Education is Key

Our country must make sure that the next generation is left better off with an educational system that reaches out to every individual giving them every opportunity to achieve their goals. We must do better in planning for our kids' futures. The jobs of today require common sense education that empowers students, not holding them back with testing and rigid methods.

My campaign advocates for new approaches to primary and secondary education such as reduced testing, later starting times and renewed emphasis on languages and music. My plan also calls for much enhanced trade education as the country continues to experience a shortage of trained labor across the trades.

In order to help achieve our country’s educational needs, Congress now accepts that funding must be increased for Pell Grants and other financial programs to help students find the right educational path for them.

Skilled Trades

Our Trade schools need to have expanded programs that include electrical and mechanical training on installation of new charging and fueling stations for future transportation needs. Electric, natural gas engines, compressors and pumps, steam turbines, power grid components all require specialized training.

Jobs of Tomorrow

Many communities still need carpenters, drivers, electricians, mechanics, pipefitters, plumbers and welders and we need to promote those skills by providing more grants for post-secondary education at colleges and technical schools.

Economic Transformation

Let’s start a new program for high school students and graduates who desire to work on the country’s economic transformation in exchange for wages and/or university credit. This could be a way of making college more affordable.

Private and public colleges and universities, research centers and laboratories are sprinkled generously throughout our country and attract students from all over the world. Yet how many can afford to attend the local college in their hometown?

Local Students Attend Locally

We need to provide for people to attend the school of their choice which may be just down the street from where they live. Given the fact that more and more people are engaged in online studies for post-secondary studies from out of state institutions, our invaluable brick and mortar institutions are at risk of falling attendance. A long-term work study program allied with colleges may be able to fill those seats up in the classrooms.

Farmers & Agriculture

Local Ag History

Ohio used to have one of the most diverse ag economies in the country where farmers grew all kinds of grains, fruits and vegetables. In fact, right up to the Civil War, Ohio was the leading grape producer in the U.S. but a labor shortage brought on by the War and later disease wiped out most of Ohio’s vineyards.

After the War, Ohio’s farmers focused on two main cash crops, corn and soy, and the primary reason was to feed the South during Reconstruction. With the exception of certain pockets now diversifying, Ohio’s ag economy still relies heavily on those two main crops.

Our farming economy may not go anywhere, but it could still die if not tended to.

Leaders must carefully take into account the history of the country’s Ag economy, its current state and its future and how it will preserve strong farming communities and strengthen them in the decades ahead. Ohio has one of the most diverse economies in the country but if there is one sector that stands out more than most needing direction, it is agriculture.

Agriculture Now

Leaders must work with our farming community and come up with some practical goals toward a sustainable farm economy in the next few years. These goals cover ethanol, wind and solar farms, rural internet infrastructure, soil and conservation, run-off, access to new markets with industrial hemp.

Our farmers are great at adapting. Just look at the return of the wine industry to Ohio. Ohio’s wineries have grown in number in a very short period of time, from 60 winery operations in the early 2000’s to now 200+. Ohio is back in the beer business too, with new farm operations growing distinctive hop varietie