It's Blackwell v. Strickland

Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell, right, talks with Dr. Glenn Weaver before voting voting Tuesday, May 2, 2006, at the St. John's Unitarian Unversalist Church, in Cincinnati. Blackwell faces Attorney General Jim Petro for the GOP nomination for governor of Ohio. (Photo by Tony Tribble/The Associated Press)

The Associated Press called the race at 10:27 p.m. The Plain Dealer called it some time later.

And now, the Republican National Committee has acknowledged former Cincinnati Mayor J. Kenneth Blackwell as the GOP candidate for governor of Ohio.

In an e-mailed statement, statement RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman made it sound like the party establishment has been backing Blackwell all along:

For 30 years Ken Blackwell has fought to reform government for Ohio families and workers. His mission today is more important than ever before. He is committed to reforming government for the Ohio taxpayer and worker. His opponent is a Washington politician who has not passed a single law during his time in Congress. If Ohio voters want change they will support Ken Blackwell’s proven reputation of reform, not Ted Strickland’s history of staying with the status quo. I have often said that the Republican Party – the Party of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass – cannot be truly whole until it welcomes more African Americans back home. Great candidates like Ken Blackwell are one of the many ways we are doing exactly that. The Republican Party is united in its support for Ken Blackwell and will work together to ensure his historic election.”

As of yet, there's no acknowledgement of Blackwell's victory from the campaign of his GOP rival, Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro.