Cincinnati's Population Total Plummets In 2010 Census: Meanwhile, City's Voter Registration Rolls Include Nearly Every Adult




  Census Finds 231,237 Adults 

  CINCINNATI (TDB) -- There is an interesting wrinkle in the 2010 Census data that sets Cincinnati's population at 296,943 residents.  Nearly all of them -- 231,237 -- are adults over age 18.  And if the federal Census is correct, that means other records show 91% of Cincinnati's adults are registered voters.  That is a huge bloc of citizens who have taken a step to become politically active -- perhaps a staggering or sobering number.  Some think the 91% number is a myth.  Or a fraud.  Others see it at as a signpost that Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory has a strong argument to make that Census officials dramatically under counted the city's residents.

A similar pattern holds true in Hamilton County, where the Census counted 612,734 adults.  Voting records show 567,629 are registered. Again, upwards of 90% of the county's adult population is politically active.  If the 90% number is anywhere close to being correct, then local officials and residents have been remarkably efficient in signing up voters.    

Mallory, a Democrat, has long argued that Cincinnati has been growing and adding new residents over the past decade.  He contends the city has at least 330,000 citizens, probably more.  The Census numbers released last week poured cold water on Mayor Mallory's math.  Cincinnati is supposed to have lost 10.4 % of its residents, among the nation's worst declines.  But The Daily Bellwether did some quick research and discovered today that almost all of the city's adults are registered voters at the Hamilton County Board of Elections.  According to the board, Hamilton County has 567,629 voters -- with 209,862 in Cincinnati.

Republican Cincinnati Councilman Charlie Winburn: Pocketing $$$ That 'Could Be Illegal'

Refunds From City Council Members



 CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Fifteen months ago, Charlie Winburn was running for a seat on city council and said he had uncovered chicanery at City Hall.   Sitting council members were receiving health care insurance and pension fund contributions that he called "unauthorized benefits received through current budget expenditures."  And their salaries were too high.  Republican candidate Winburn was blowing the whistle on the scam.  He issued an Aug. 25, 2009 press release under this headline:  "Winburn calls upon city council to give up questionable taxpayer funded health and pension benefits."   The move would save $400,000 and end a practice that Winburn said "could be illegal."   



Fast forward to today.  Winburn appears to be taking the benefits of public office that he deemed improper at best, illegal at worst.  Despite the talk, once in office Winburn never seems to have lifted a finger to halt practices he denounced as possibly illegal.  Of course, it could be that his complaints were a scam, an effort to make something out of nothing.  In fact, he now seems to be sharing in the loot -- or what he considered loot when he was on the outside.  And though he has the option of refunding his paycheck to the city, he doesn't seem to have given much back.  Winburn appears to personify an old proverb:  Talk is cheap.      

Winburn could use the city's voluntary refund option to return all, or part, of his $60,650 annual council salary to the city.  Records (up to date through 11/18, see accompanying chart) show he returned $1,400 last January.  The same City Hall finance and accounting records show Democratic Mayor Mark Mallory refunds $165.87 out of each paycheck; Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, another Dem, returns $96.82 biweekly, and Councilman Cecil Thomas, also a Dem, gives back $50 from each paycheck.  Republican Leslie Ghiz refunded $132.80 last January.  Refunds from the three Democrats total $5,941.11 so far this year.  Together, the two Republicans have refunded $1,532.80. 

Both Winburn and Ghiz have complained that council's pay package is too much -- yet they haven't shown much interest in voluntarily rebating sums they consider excess.  Winburn in particular was opposed to the salary, health insurance and pension contributions benefits for council members, whom he described as part-time workers.  He said council members got a full-time salary for a part-time job.  From his press release 15 months ago (when he was running for office):

"Current city policy for part time employees who work less than 30 hours per week does not provide health care benefits.  This decision to cut benefits would put all part time employees, including council members, on the same playing field as it applies to health care benefits.

"Winburn said Councilwoman Ghiz's (she, too. was running for office at the time) proposal to cut council pay is a good start but doesn't go far enough in reforming the total council compensation package for city council members . . ."

Winburn said any savings should go to prevent the layoffs of fire and police.  Now it looks like it was all talk.  Winburn, who complained last week that the city misspent $5,000 on a streetcar display on Fountain Square, is silent about his own complicity this year in activities he labeled possible misfeasance last year.  After all, it was he who said council's payroll package "could be illegal."  Meanwhile, he hasn't noted that the money refunded by the mayor, Qualls and Thomas exceeds the cost of the streetcar display.  And city officials who handle Cincinnati's payroll and budgeting say they haven't heard very much this year from Winburn about cutting his own salary, or reducing benefits packages.

Chris Bigham, superintendent of accounts and auditing over payroll at City Hall, said Winburn has taken the full amount of every council paycheck since January:  "I have not heard one word from him about refunds or anything like that.  He did make a donation earlier this year."

Budget Director Lea Eriksen said she has no memory of Winburn contacting her about reducing his council salary and benefits.   "No, he's not brought that up to me,'' Eriksen told The Daily Bellwwether.  "I follow Council items closely.  If he would have done anything, I would have seen it."

So what could Winburn voluntarily cut from his own pocket?  Here's the list of things that he wanted slashed:  $65,670 in salary; $9,198 annual pension benefits; $5,000-$8,000 annual health benefits.  He said council's compensation package was "$83,268 approximate total of annual compensation."   And in Winburn's world every penny was "questionable" and "could be illegal" and "misinterpretation of what they are entitled to under the term 'compensation.'"

[UPDATE: 4:55 pm -- Winburn copied The Daily Bellwether on an e-mail he sent out today that explains why he's taking city benefits:  "Regarding your inquiry, I based my original question upon a plain reading of the Cincinnati City Charter. We asked and the city administration answered. They determined that the benefits paid for council members were considered compensation and were not a violation of the Charter. When I joined Cincinnati City Council in December, 2009, I opted out of the City-provided benefits because I was covered under another plan. I was subsequently told by the City that I could not opt out of their plan and was required to be covered. If you can provide any further information to me on whether these benefits are illegal, please let me know so that I can opt out altogether."]

Right Wing Ex-Enquirer Columnist Peter Bronson: Has New Gig At Cincy Magazine

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Bronson somehow managed to write a nice thing about a Democrat. Still, the rabid rightwinger mostly drones on and on from his one-note political hymnal -- he has claimed the White House keeps a list of "dangerous conservatives." He admits the newspaper threw him overboard last July. Bronson writes he was a casualty of the lousy economy, but neglects to mention the national flap over a faked photo of Sen. Al Franken that preceded his departure by a few days. In his new gig, Bronson produces a bimonthly column for the city magazine that's aimed at the business and professional class, and there is buzz that he soon may be moving into an editor's spot. Bronson's piece in the current issue is available online and he's offered some (surprise!) praise for Cincinnati's Democratic Mayor Mark Mallory, whose anti-crime efforts he sees as paying dividends:

"Still, I am optimistic.After a peaceful time-out from the daily menu of fast-food headlines, I have a much healthier view of the city. Downtown is more dynamic than it’s been in years. It even shows vital signs of a nightlife. Crime is in check because Mayor Mark Mallory came up with the radical plan to let the police do their job. The bulimic growth of local government has been put on a revenue-starvation diet. And, compared to many cities, we have clean government. For all the partisan thumb wrestling, Cincinnati is just too darned well mannered for corruption. So I’d say Cincinnati is a stock with lots of upside growth potential for one big reason: Its human resources."

Clinton Ties Obama In Ohio, Moves Ahead In Texas: Zogby Says Cincinnati Is Keeping Obama In The Game

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Ohio tied: Clinton 44, Obama 44. Texas: Clinton up 3, Clinton 47, Obama 44. The final tracking poll issued by John Zogby for the March 4 Ohio and Texas Democratic presidential primaries shows a shift toward Hillary Clinton. On Monday, Zogby was the nation's sole major pollster showing an Obama lead in Ohio. Today, he says mayor Mark Mallory's endorsement is helping Obama hold the line in Cincinnati. All the numbers are available here. Zogby's analysis of the data he released today:

"In Ohio, there have been no dramatic changes. This has always been close, except that the undecideds are up to 8%, and the increase has come from the Obama column. It looks like a combination of questions raised about Obama's capacity to lead the military, his stance on NAFTA, and questions about ethics have shaved a few points off his support.

"Clinton has not closed the deal yet, but she has picked up some additional support among women. Obama continues to lead in the big cities, and it looks like Cincinnati is keeping him in this game. He has been working it hard and has received the endorsement of the mayor there. But Clinton has opened up a big lead among Catholics -- which, translated, means white ethnics."

Ex-Cincy Mayor Roxanne Qualls: New Domain 'Quallsformayor.com' Has Folks Wondering

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- When former Cincinnati Mayor Roxanne Qualls switched from Democrat to a third-party last week to take a City Council seat, there was quiet and immediate speculation in political circles she was laying groundwork for a return to her old post. Now she admits she has registered "quallsformayor.com," but says it doesn't mean she's thinking about challenging Democratic incumbent Mark Mallory.

In other words, Qualls wants people to believe there is nothing to it. Others are thinking: Yeah, right Roxanne.

Five years ago, Qualls was saying she was totally through with elective politics and wouldn't be back. Cincinnati CityBeat writer Doug Trapp interviewed her in January 2005 and reported she was done with campaigning, at least for herself. Qualls said:

"I do not have any intention of returning to Cincinnati to run for office."

Trapp said she made her feelings abundantly clear. Three possibilities come to mind about her comments from that time: She now needs a job; she changed her mind; or she was stretching the truth when she spoke to CityBeat. Today, she has a new patch of real estate staked out on the Internet, but is dismissing the significance of the newly created domain that smells like a campaign for mayor in two years.

Three possiblities come to mind: She wants the mayor's job; she is going to change her story; and she is stretching the truth by denying any interest.

Cincinnati Post contributor Joe Wessels found the new Website , then talked to Xavier University prof Gene Beaupre, an expert on local politics and elections and somewhat of a Democratic insider himself. Beaupre said he thinks Qualls could be considering a run for mayor -- something that her move seems to have telegraphed.

"She has to be thinking of two years from now," Beaupre said. He added that Mallory's critics in the party have been chafing for months because they wanted a stronger figure. Mallory hasn't exactly been a puppet to the pro-business corporate crowd.

Said Beaupre:

"It's very possible that if you are a Democrat on Council, that would would have tought he would have kept a tighter coalition on Council and made your life easier."

Qualls was term-limited out of the council and mayor's office in 1999. She has been appointed to fill a Charter Committee seat that opens up Sept. 3 when an incumbent resigns and leaves office earlier. She is campaigning for reelection to the seat. She has been a Democrat, and says she remains a Dem at all levels except the City Council, where the Charter Party has been a player in city affairs since the 1920s. The third party exists only in Cincinnati.

Cincinnati Mayor Mallory: He Saved St. Patrick's Day Parade

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- No blarney. The annual St. Patrick's Day Parade that draws thousands to downtown Cincinnati almost moved across the Ohio River to Kentucky this year. A site switch would have been a huge embarrassment, especially since the theme of this year's March 17 procession is "Celebrating Cincinnati's Rebirth."

Details about the parade and its history are HERE.

Insiders with the Ancient Order of Hibernians, an Irish social club that started the parade 41 years ago, credit Cincinnati's Democratic Mayor Mark Mallory with intervening 10 days ago after city officials demanded almost $14,000 in fees from the parade's sponsors, the Cincinnati St. Patrick Parade Committee. The group didn't have the cash and began scouting for alternate sites, including a route in Northern Kentucky near the Ohio River waterfront. Cincinnati wanted $1,896 for traffic engineering, $8,831 for public services, $1,741 for the fire department and $1,060 for police. Mallory got nearly $11,ooo of the fees trimmed in a deal that is supposed to be approved at City Hall today. Council members David Crowley, an Irishman, and Jim Tarbell, also were involved in saving the parade.

An insider with the parade committee confirmed to The Daily Bellwether that there was a flurry of behind-the-scenes activity to keep the parade in Cincinnati. "We got hit with the bombshell about the money about 10 days ago," said Gary Schlegel, a parade committee member. "Right away, the mayor said 'we can't lose the St. Patrick's Day Parade' and he wanted to find a solution. He went to work and did it. We plan to march downtown. He did a great job."