Two distinctly different political areas in northeast Ohio are normally spirited and active come election time but on this polling day, they experienced a slow early voter turnout. When the voting numbers were posted at 11 a.m. at Westlake City Hall, just 41 of the precinct’s registered voters had cast their ballots during the steady…

WESTLAKE, Ohio—Just 41 of the precinct registered voters had cast their ballots during the steady rainfall in this west Cleveland suburb when the turnout numbers were posted at 11 a.m. on May 3 at Westlake City Hall. Republican balloting slightly led Democrats ballots cast, 15 to 13. Independents cast 13 ballots, according to the numbers…

Ohio’s Lorain County, located along Lake Erie 30 miles west of Cleveland, is a textbook example of a region that has gone from riches to rustbelt. Because of the protracted deterioration of major manufacturing, a loss of jobs, and empty downtown storefronts, many consider it ground zero for the direction that the region—and maybe the…