COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Across America, as families are stuck in their homes anxious and isolated by the new coronavirus, a new daily ritual is taking shape: tuning into the governor’s afternoon press briefing.
Residents sequestered under a stay-at-home order in Ohio seem to hang on Republican Gov. Mike DeWine’s every word, sharing his latest orders among friends via text message and on social media and following along with a drinking game — “Wine with DeWine.” Signature T-shirts and tumblers are available online.
They will someday be artifacts from a moment when state leaders like DeWine found the spotlight — even a new sort of celebrity — amid a national crisis. As Americans look for guideposts in disorienting times, New York’s Andrew Cuomo, California’s Gavin Newsom and leaders of smaller states like Kentucky and Rhode Island, have become chief sources of factual information and leading decision-makers, not to mention public counselors and pop culture touchstones.
The new prominence of state leaders is in part a result of a disjointed public health system that leaves considerable power to state and local officials. Still, it marks a clear departure from crises of the past, when the U.S. presidents seized these roles. After years of intense focus on Washington and a creeping nationalization of politics, the coronavirus crisis has become a reminder of the significance of leaders closer to home.