An independent candidate for the Ohio House of Representatives is campaigning in the 87th District with a platform that emphasizes state public banking, local transit options and broader childcare access, Crawford County Now reported.
Craig Swartz collected 693 petition signatures to qualify for the ballot, according to the outlet. He discussed his leading proposal, a state-owned "Bank of Ohio," during a recent Community Spotlight appearance.
The bank would be modeled on North Dakota's public bank, per the report. Under the plan, it would hold state tax revenue and work with community banks and credit unions to offer low-interest loans for infrastructure, farms, small businesses and new childcare facilities in rural areas.
Swartz also criticized the Ohio Department of Transportation's proposed U.S. Route 23 bypass. He said the project saves drivers roughly six to seven minutes while taking multi-generational farmland, and suggested studying an elevated highway above the current route to keep land in use and ease congestion.
He described his independent candidacy as a nonpartisan alternative aimed at economic revitalization and practical solutions in North Central Ohio.
The 87th District includes Crawford, Morrow and Wyandot counties, along with portions of Marion County, the outlet reported.