Ohio Auto Workers: How Does the Industry Affect Your Vote?

Ohio, normally a slightly Republican-leaning state, is trending toward Barack Obama. A Real Clear Politics aggregation of pollsshows the president up by 5.5 percentage points, and with the state's unemployment rate below the national average at 7.2 percent, Mitt Romney hasn't been able to use the struggling economy as effectively as a campaign issue.

Much of the president's success could be tied to a resurgent automotive industry. The Buckeye State has about 850,000 jobs -- about 12 percent of the state's workforce -- linked to the industry.

To gauge how Ohio autoworkers, their families, and residents who are reliant on the industry are feeling, Yahoo News is asking them to share their perspectives on the 2012 campaign.

If you or your family depends on the auto industry in Ohio and you're interested in sharing your thoughts, please let us know. There are a couple ways you can participate:

• E-mail us your thoughts at contributor-news [at] yahoo-inc [dot] com. Please include your first and last name, where you live, how you're tied to the auto industry and how the industry is affecting your presidential vote.

• Sign up with Yahoo! Contributor Network to tell your story.

Here are some of the questions we're asking:

• Where and how do you work in the auto industry? How is your job tied to the automotive bailouts, if at all?

• Are you more or less likely to support Obama or Romney because of the bailouts? Do the bailouts even factor into your vote? How does the automotive industry, in general, factor into your vote?

• What do you make of Obama's lead in Ohio, vis-à-vis the automotive industry and the recent success of domestic automakers?

• How has your family benefited -- or not -- because of the automotive industry? In general, are you more likely to back candidates who stick up (financially or otherwise) for your industry?