Ohio Black Dems, elected officials, and greater Cleveland Carnegie Roundtable think tank to discuss next Ohio Democratic Party chairperson at luncheon and open meeting in Cleveland on Wednesday, November 19 at Angie's soul food restaurant, Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern is quitting, Black Dems, community activists of Cuyahoga County, and of Ohio, want a say in his replacement, Lucas County Democratic Party Executive Director Yvonne Harper is guest speaker at luncheon, By Cleveland Urban News.Com, Ohio's leader in Black digital news (www.clevelandurbannews.com)

Charles E. Bibb Sr.

By Kathy Wray Coleman, editor-n-chief, Cleveland Urban News. Com and The Cleveland Urban News.Com Blog, Ohio's Most Read Online Black Newspaper and Newspaper Blog, Tel: (216) 659-0473 

Kathy Wray Coleman is  a community activist and 21- year investigative journalist who trained for 17 years at the Call and Post Newspaper.  (www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com)

CLEVELAND, Ohio-The greater Cleveland Carnegie Roundtable will host a city club- style luncheon and open meeting on Wednesday, Nov.19 at 3 pm at Angie's soul food restaurant in Cleveland, 3400 Saint Clair Avenue, to discuss the next Ohio Democratic Party chairperson. Call Cuyahoga County Democratic Party operative Charles E. Bibb Sr., a former East Cleveland councilman, for more information at (216) 659-4619.

"We invite all interested people to attend, and would ask them to R.S. V. P., if possible," Bibb told Cleveland Urban News.Com, Ohio's leader in Black digital news.

The guest speaker is Lucas County Democratic Party Executive Director Yvonne Harper, who is Black. 

Others slated to speak include Cleveland NAACP Secretary Arlene Anderson, Cleveland Ward 10 Councilman Jeff Johnson, the Reverends Brenda Ware Abrams and Jeffery Jemison, who is a former chaplain for the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party and a former East Cleveland School Board member, labor affiliate Lane Dunbar, and community activists Gwendolyn Pitts, Dick Peery, and Grio Y-Von.

Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern, who lost his own reelection as state representative, announced election night of Nov 4 that he is quitting, a decision that came after incumbent Republican Gov. John Kasich trounced Democrat Ed FitzGerald, the outgoing Cuyahoga County executive. This, coupled with an embarrassing Republican sweep of all statewide offices, including attorney general, treasurer, secretary of state and auditor, and two Supreme Court seats, has some Democrats bothered. And Black leaders and community activists of Cuyahoga County, a Democratic stronghold, want a say in who will be the next party chair for the Dems of Ohio as the 2016 presidential election looms.

The favorable candidate, sources say,  must be able to raise money, to unify the Democratic Party in Ohio,  and must get along with influential Black leaders and Black elected officials, a skill Redfern might be lacking, some of his critics now say.

The Carnegie Roundtable, made famous by the late Cleveland criminal defense attorney and former Cleveland School Board member Stanley Tolliver, is self-described as an African American 'think-tank' comprised of Black politicians, community leaders, and citizens concerned about Ohioans and public policy issues impacting the Black community.  The group of politicians, community activists and political wannabes traditionally met at Angie's Soul Food Restaurant at 55th and Euclid Avenue in Cleveland, and talked politics while throwing down on soul food, some of them eating delicacies like ox tails,and chitlins, including Tolliver. 

Angie's now has new locations throughout Cleveland, including a restaurant in the Lee-Harvard community in Ward 1 on the city's east side. 

(www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com)