There was no shortage of enthusiasm as the Romney bus tour came to downtown Marietta Friday.
The one statewide office-seeker on board: Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel, who is opposing Democratic U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown.
"I believe the coal, oil and gas we have here in Southeast Ohio are assets; they mean jobs for people in the state and country," Mandel said Friday in an interview with WTAP News. "And, as a senator, I'll do everything I can to protect these jobs in the energy area."
Congressman Bill Johnson faces a tough re-election battle against Democrat Charlie Wilson, the man he defeated for that office two years ago.
"The response has been great," Johnson says. "The emphasis is on early voting, making sure Ohioans know what their rights are, and knowing how important it is to exercise those rights, and get out and vote early."
But Mitt Romney's son, Tagg, was the person a lot of them came to see. He promoted his father as a proven job-seeker and budget balancer, while saying Ohio hasn't recovered enough economically, four years after President Obama took office.
While Tagg Romney talked about Mitt Romney's accomplishments, he spoke about something else as well: the governor's human side.
"There was a friend of ours in church whose 14-year old had been diagnosed with leukemia," the younger Romney told the crowd. "I watched for the next couple of months as my dad got involved in their lives, and spent his nights and weekends at the hospital with that family. He helped write his will before he passed away."
Encouraged by recent polls, this group believes Mitt Romney can win the state-something considered vital to winning the presidency-and that Southeast Ohio can lead the way.
