OHIO, USA — Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley announced Monday she is running for Governor of Ohio.
"We deserve an Ohio where one job is enough to provide for your family. An Ohio where your kids have real opportunities. An Ohio where everyone, no matter your zip code, can thrive. I’m running for governor because it’s time Ohioans had a government — and a governor — who works for us, not for themselves," Whaley said in her announcement.
Whaley ran for Ohio governor in 2017 before dropping out and endorsing Richard Cordray, who lost to Mike DeWine in 2018.
Whaley, a Democrat, was first elected mayor of Dayton in 2013.
In a one-on-one interview Monday, Whaley told WTOL 11's Tyler Paley that combatting gun violence will be among her top priorities if elected -- a topic close to her heart after the 2019 mass shooting in Dayton's Oregon District left nine people dead.
Whaley said enough hasn't been done since then to combat gun violence in Ohio. In fact, she said she thinks Ohio has taken a step in the wrong direction. Whaley called out Gov. Mike DeWine and other Republicans for Ohio's new "Stand Your Ground" law that recently went into effect.
"Like nine out of 10 Ohioans, I agree with common sense, universal background checks," she told WTOL 11. "That would be a way to keep our state safe. What Mike DeWine has done is the exact opposite. His latest signing of the "Stand Your Ground" no duty to retreat bill basically, by every study, makes our communities less safe."
Whaley has never held office in northwest Ohio, but some of her ideas and policies have made their way up I-75.
Dayton set up a community program to combat gun violence. It worked and Toledo essentially copied it with a newly-implemented initiative including the hire of JoJuan Armour.
There is also universal Pre-K, one of Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz's major priorities. Much of that policy came from Dayton and the Whaley administration.
Whaley's current term ends in 2022 and she announced earlier this year she is not running for re-election.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has said he plans to run again in 2022.
10TV contributed to this report.