As you'll recall, we recently reported that Ohio State Representative Jay Goyal was mentioned as a possible candidate for Lieutenant Governor.  Well, here's an extensive profile of Goyal in his local paper, the Mansfield News Journal.

At 26, Goyal won 63 percent of the vote in 2006 to succeed the retiring Democrat state Rep. Bill Hartnett, whom he describes as a mentor. Now Goyal is a frontrunner to be Gov. Ted Strickland's running mate in 2010. Goyal could succeed Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, who is resigning to run for the U.S. Senate.

...

If Goyal becomes Strickland's running mate, it will cap one of the quickest ascents ever for an Ohio politician.

"He would bring youth," said Herb Asher, a professor emeritus at The Ohio State University and an expert in Ohio politics.

Asher noted Goyal's business background, saying it could help Strickland's 2010 ticket.

"Jay would be someone who's very, very conversant when it comes to the economy, growth and jobs," Asher said. "If he comes across as a mature, prepared, thoughtful person, (his youth) shouldn't be a problem."

...

Recently, the fresh-faced majority whip and Lexington High School graduate reflected a little on his journey.

"I was really, truly expecting to just go the engineering and business path," said Goyal, a 2003 graduate ofNorthwestern University, where he majored in industrial engineering. "But one thing led to another. Here I am in Mansfield and the 2004 elections are coming up and (Sen. John Kerry) is running for president.

"I really wanted to get involved because I knew that whoever won Ohio was going to win the presidency."

Kerry lost Ohio and the election, but Goyal's swift rise to county coordinator for his campaign at the age of 23 got area Democrats talking.

"People said, 'Why don't you consider running for office?' " Goyal said.

He did, challenging fellow Democrat Ellen Haring in 2006 in a primary for Hartnett's seat.

Goyal is old-fashioned -- a detail gleaned from one look at the beat-up, '90s-era Saturn he drives -- and he said the key to his campaign was old-fashioned.

"In the winter when it was 20 degrees out, I would be out knocking on doors. I think I knocked on 13,000 doors," Goyal said. "I had never held an office before, never ran for office before. It's an overwhelmingly Republican area. George Bush got 60 percent of the vote (in 2004). You add all those factors up: young, Democrat, never held office before, Indian-American. ... How the heck is he going to win?"

In a primary upset, Goyal trounced Haring by a 22-point margin before beating Republican Phil Holloway in the general election by an even bigger margin, 26 points. He was selected as majority whip in the Ohio House in 2008, just as Democrats won back that chamber. Then, in March, he was chosen as one of three Ohio House members to serve on the joint House-Senate Budget Reconciliation Committee.

Also, here's a quick report on a bill that Goyal recently sponsored in the Ohio legislature.

Ohio’s public universities could transfer more of their research discoveries to companies that can take them to market – creating new products and jobs — under an amendment that was part of the budget bill for this fiscal year.

House Bill 140, sponsored by Rep. Jay Goyal, a Mansfield Democrat, and Rep. Mark Schneider, a Democrat from Mentor, enables the state’s 14 public universities and colleges to accept stock or other ownership stakes in companies that are created to develop and commercialize their discoveries.

Let's hope this positive press helps build momentum for his candidacy.