Cheryl Perez For Ohio's 19th State House
In this interview, Matt sits down with Cheryl C.P. Perez, a Democratic candidate for Ohio House District 19, for a constituent-driven conversation covering both campaign controversy and policy substance.
The discussion starts with the PAC-backed mailer that became an early flashpoint in the race, then moves into Perez’s argument that Democrats have lost ground by ceding economic and small-business issues.
From there, the interview expands into school funding, EdChoice, SB1, property taxes, tax abatements, lobbying, HB 6, anti-Semitism in the primary, lived experience, trade and investment policy, the state budget, data centers, and broader questions about whether government is still capable of serving ordinary people. It ends with marijuana policy, campaign values, and a closing appeal to voters in House District 19.
Ohio’s 19th State House District Stretches across eastern, southeastern, and central Cuyahoga County, the towns and villages of Bentleyville, Brecksville, Brooklyn Heights, Chagrin Falls, Chagrin Falls Township, Cleveland (Ward 12 Precincts M, N, P and Ward 13 Precincts M, N, O), Cuyahoga Heights, Glenwillow, Highland Heights, Hunting Valley, Independence, Mayfield Heights, Moreland Hills, Newburgh Heights, Oakwood, Pepper Pike, Seven Hills, Solon, Valley View, and Walton Hills make up Ohio’s uniquely shaped 19th House District (HD19).
Timestamps
00:00:00 – Introduction and interview setup
Matt opens the interview, introduces Cheryl Perez as a candidate in the three-way Democratic primary for Ohio House District 19, and explains that the questions being asked were submitted by constituents in advance. Cheryl then gives her personal introduction, describing herself as a small business owner, a mother of six, a caregiver, and an operations consultant who says she entered the race because Ohio families are being squeezed by property taxes, healthcare, childcare, and a state government she believes has stopped listening.
00:02:52 – PAC mailer controversy and Democratic economic messaging
Matt goes directly to the controversy over a mailer tied to the Ohio’s Highlands for Healthy Economy Action Fund and asks Perez about the group’s reported ties to a Republican-leaning donor. Perez says she does not control independent PACs, but argues that the support reflects the strength of her economic and small-business message. That leads into a broader exchange about how Democrats, in both her view and Matt’s, have too often abandoned “kitchen table” issues like inflation, debt, spending, small business, and the economy, leaving Republicans to dominate those conversations.
00:06:34 – Big-picture governing: schools, workforce, and the economy
Perez explains that she sees most major state issues as interconnected. She argues that public school funding is not only an education issue, but also a workforce development and long-term economic development issue. She makes the same case for broader state policy, saying that if Ohio weakens schools, higher education, or long-term affordability, it is also weakening its future workforce and harming its economic prospects.
00:08:53 – EdChoice, fair school funding, and SB1
The interview then moves into EdChoice, voucher programs, and SB1. Perez argues that starving public schools while expanding private school vouchers makes no sense and says the state has backed away from its fair share of school funding. On SB1, she gives one of the most personal stretches of the interview, drawing on her role on Ohio University boards and her daughter’s experience. She says students are angry, some are leaving the state, jobs have already been affected on campus, and professors may choose not to work in Ohio, all of which she frames as part of a larger brain drain and long-term workforce problem.
00:14:25 – Property taxes, small business taxation, and affordability
Matt pivots into taxes, asking how Perez would square fair school funding with the reality that many families and small business owners already feel overtaxed. Perez argues that the state has repeatedly pushed its responsibilities down onto local governments, which in turn pushes the burden onto homeowners and small businesses through property taxes and other local taxes. She emphasizes that small businesses are the largest employers, yet are often treated as an afterthought while major companies receive favorable treatment. She also ties rising property taxes directly to the state’s affordability crisis and says this is part of why younger people are leaving Ohio.
00:19:22 – Lobbying, FirstEnergy/HB 6, and ethics in Columbus
From there, Matt raises lobbying and the FirstEnergy scandal. Perez says she is not a career politician and argues that servant leadership, moral clarity, and accountability are missing in Columbus. She describes HB 6 and FirstEnergy not as a one-off scandal, but as a broader collapse of trust and transparency. She says she would push for more transparency around utility lobbying and dark money, stronger ethics and utility oversight laws, and a review of Ohio’s energy laws to strip out the remnants and culture that allowed the scandal to happen.
00:23:55 – Nicole Sigurdsson controversy, anti-Semitism, and representation
Matt then asks Perez about one of her opponents, Nicole Sigurdsson, and the criticism over a “From the river to the sea” post. Perez says “I didn’t know” is not a sufficient excuse when someone is seeking to represent a district with a significant Jewish population. She says candidates have an obligation to understand the communities they represent and to think through the impact of what they post or endorse. This part of the interview transitions into a broader discussion of identity, empathy, and lived experience, including Perez’s reflections on being a Black woman, her marriage into a Cuban family, and how different lived experiences shape the way she thinks about representation, immigration, and public service.
00:31:11 – Israel-related business policy, HB 96, and public spending priorities
Matt shifts back to policy by asking Perez how she views legislation connected to economic investment and trade with Israel. Perez says she is open to those partnerships if they are transparent, accountable, and genuinely beneficial to Ohio’s economy and small businesses. The conversation then moves into HB 96, where she identifies three major problems: failure to fully fund the fair school funding plan, the proposed public money for the Haslams’ stadium project, and tax choices she says favor higher earners while leaving local communities and homeowners stuck with the costs. Matt amplifies that critique by describing the stadium funding idea as using people’s money like a slush fund.
00:35:39 – Data centers, tax abatements, and whether development actually helps communities
Matt raises data centers and broader tax abatement policy, asking whether these deals really help local economies when they consume land, water, and power while often employing relatively few people. Perez says she understands the theory behind abatements, but argues that local communities are too often not meaningfully consulted and may not receive enough real benefit in return. Her position is that any such deal should require transparency, accountability, and direct community input, rather than being driven from the top down. Matt adds that government often keeps ineffective policies alive because of political incentives and entrenched stakeholders, even after the original rationale has broken down.
00:55:30 – Marijuana regulation and closing campaign message
Near the end, the conversation touches on marijuana policy, with Matt arguing that the original public intent was marijuana regulation more like alcohol, not the broad proliferation of gummies, THC derivatives, drinks, and other products being folded into the debate. Perez praises the thoroughness of his argument and jokes that if she gets to Columbus she will call him down to testify.
The interview then closes with her final appeal: she says endorsements are just opinions, urges voters to study the facts and make up their own minds, points people to her website and social media, and says she is running because Ohio families deserve a government that works for them again.
Disclaimer: This content was generated using ChatGPT based on an AI-transcribed recording. While efforts were made to ensure accuracy, some phrasing or timestamps may not perfectly reflect the original conversation.