Republicans look to reclaim Ohio

CLEVELAND — When 17 presidential contenders converge on Cleveland to debate on Thursday, not a few party leaders will be shuddering at the prospect of a scene out of “The Hunger Games.” Or perhaps a duel of insults dominated by Donald Trump.

But Republican leaders are delighted by one aspect of the debate: the attention it will shower on Ohio, a state they hope to bring back into the Republican fold in the 2016 election. The ultimate bellwether state in presidential politics, Ohio is the site of next Thursday’s debate because, just under a year from now, it will host the 2016 convention in the same Cleveland sports arena.

“We will have thousands of Ohio Republican volunteers and activists converging on Cleveland next summer,” said Mark R. Weaver, a Republican strategist in the state. “They will be re-energized, signed up and ready to rock.”

Besides firing up activists, Republicans are using the debate and the convention to woo Ohio’s general-election voters — who have unerringly picked every president since 1964 — and highlight before millions of voters nationwide the state’s economic resurgence, which the party credits to Republican leadership.

“No Republican has ever gained the White House without carrying Ohio,” said Matt Borges, chairman of the Ohio Republican Party. “You’ve got to be from Mars to not understand that.”

Conservatives are planning a “Buckeye Boot Camp” on the day of the debate here, training activists at the House of Blues. And around Ohio, more than a dozen paid organizers for the national party, who have moved to the state 15 months before the general election, plan debate-watching parties to help recruit volunteers.

The top 10 candidates in national polls, who will debate Thursday in prime time on Fox News, may include Gov. John Kasich of Ohio.