|
BALLOT
DISQUALIFICATIONS, WITHDRAWALS
Last month, 491 candidates filed petitions to run for Governor, Attorney
General, State Auditor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, U.S. Senate,
U.S. House, Ohio Senate, Ohio House, Ohio Supreme Court, or Ohio Courts
of Appeals in 2006.
Because their petitions weren’t certified by their local county
board of elections or because they withdrew their candidacies voluntarily,
several will not appear on the May 2 primary ballot.
In order to certify a candidate to the ballot, the board must confirm
that the candidate submitted a sufficient number of valid signatures
of voters within the district the candidate is seeking to represent.
The boards of elections had one week from the Feb. 16 filing deadline
to complete this task, and a total of 15 candidates were disqualified
for failing to satisfy these requirements.
Three of these candidates subsequently filed declarations of intent
to run as write-in candidates in the primary and thus can potentially
still secure a spot on the November ballot. In addition, 15 candidates
withdrew after filing.
P.a.C.E. staff gathered all of this information from another round of
calls to boards of elections across the state, and you can get filing
lists with this updated information by clicking
here.
Below is a summary of the changes in candidate filing status that have
occurred:
Auditor of State
– Christopher McNulty (R-Columbus) withdrew his candidacy.
Auditor of State – John B. Reardon (D-Poland) withdrew his candidacy.
Secretary of State – Robert G. Montgomery (R-Westerville) withdrew
his candidacy.
Secretary of State – Jim Trakas (R-Independence) withdrew his
candidacy.
8th District Court of Appeals – Michael J. Corrigan (R-Westlake)
withdrew his candidacy.
U.S. Senate – John Mitchel (R-Beavercreek) withdrew his candidacy.
U.S. House District 6 – Richard A. Holt (R-Proctorville) was disqualified.
U.S. House District 6 – Charles A. Wilson (D-St. Clairsville)
was disqualified; subsequently declared intent to run as a write-in.
U.S. House District 12 – Nickindar Nain Singh (D-Columbus) withdrew
his candidacy.
U.S. House District 12 – John Swords (D-Columbus) withdrew his
candidacy.
U.S. House District 13 – Ruth Nader Abboud (R-Hinckley) was disqualified.
U.S. House District 13 – Anthony Cirino (R-Avon) was disqualified.
U.S. House District 13 – Daniel Goulder (D-Westlake) was disqualified.
U.S. House District 13 – Lawrence Jaycox (R-Elyria) was disqualified.
U.S. House District 16 – Jeff Seemann (D-Canton) was disqualified.
U.S. House District 17 – Don Manning, II (R-Cortland) declared
intent to run as a write-in.
Ohio Senate District 9 – Catherine L. Barrett (D-Cincinnati) withdrew
her candidacy.
Ohio Senate District 27 – Joshua Franchetti (D-Copley) withdrew
his candidacy.
Ohio House District 10 – J. DeVaughn Perry (D-Cleveland) was disqualified.
Ohio House District 11 – Joshua H. Wallace (D-Cleveland) was disqualified.
Ohio House District 13 – Ernest M. Phillips (R-Lakewood) was disqualified.
Ohio House District 13 – John Patrick Hildebrand (R-Lakewood)
declared intent to run as a write-in.
Ohio House District 16 – Lanene Marie Meslat (D-Westlake) was
disqualified.
Ohio House District 16 – Michael J. O’Shea (D-Rocky River)
declared intent to run as a write-in.
Ohio House District 23 – Michael Murphy (D-Galloway) was disqualified;
subsequently declared intent to run as a write-in.
Ohio House District 24 – Steve Von Jasinski (D-Columbus) withdrew
his candidacy.
Ohio House District 26 – Jennifer Scott (D-Columbus) was disqualified.
Ohio House District 37 – Guy Fogle (D-Kettering) was disqualified;
subsequently declared intent to run as a write-in.
Ohio House District 39 – Brice Sims (D-Dayton) withdrew his candidacy.
Ohio House District 39 – Stephanie Coates (R-Dayton) was disqualified.
Ohio House District 43 – Jack Sarver (D-Tallmadge) withdrew his
candidacy.
Ohio House District 46 – Mark P. Dansack (D-Maumee) declared intent
to run as a write-in.
Ohio House District 60 – James E. Fortune (D-Youngstown) withdrew
his candidacy.
Ohio House District 76 – Brett F. Molk (D-Kenton) withdrew his
candidacy.
Ohio House District 76 – John F. Kostyo (D-Findlay) declared intent
to run as a write-in.
A
BRIEF LOOK AT CONTESTED CONGRESSIONAL PRIMARIES
U.S. Senate: (Democrats) – U.S. Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-Avon) and
Merrill “Sam” Keiser (D-Fremont) are squaring off for the
right to take on incumbent Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Cedarville) in November.
Brown, a seven-term congressman who also served two terms as Secretary
of State in the 1980’s, is the prohibitive favorite in this race.
Keiser, whose issue stances would appeal more to Republican primary
voters than Democrat primary voters, is the owner of a trucking business.
A Brown-DeWine general election matchup is already being discussed as
a race with national implications.
U.S. Senate: (Republicans) – Incumbent Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Cedarville)
faces Bill Pierce of Maineville and David Smith of Mason as he attempts
to secure a third term. DeWine is under fire from conservatives for
his 2005 role as one of the “Gang of 14” senators that brokered
the judicial filibuster compromise in the Senate. The dissatisfaction
with DeWine voiced by conservatives was underscored by the incumbent’s
failure to secure county party endorsements in Clermont, Fulton, and
Preble Counties and, stunningly, to even see one such endorsement –
in Knox County – go to Pierce outright. Pierce, a teacher and owner
of an engineering consulting firm making his first run for office, has
emerged as the biggest threat to DeWine. Smith, a finance manager for
Procter & Gamble, finished ninth in a field of 11 candidates in
last year’s 2nd congressional district GOP primary. He also ran
unsuccessfully for Congress in Tennessee in 2004 and in Utah in 2002.
Based on a significant fundraising advantage and widespread name recognition,
DeWine should withstand the challenge from his right.
Congressional District 2: (Democrats) – Invigorated by the strong
showing of Democrat nominee Paul Hackett in last year’s special
congressional election in this typically strong Republican district,
five candidates are vying for the party’s nomination in May. Three
of them were also candidates in the ’05 primary: Waverly health
care administrator Jim Parker, Cincinnati civil engineer Jeff Sinnard,
and Indian Hill doctor Victoria Wells Wulsin. In a field of six candidates,
Wulls finished second to Hackett with 27% of the vote, while Parker
was fourth with 5% and Sinnard fifth with 2%. Joining these three in
this year’s primary are Gaby Downey, a teacher, and Thor Jacobs,
owner of a small residential construction business. Both reside in Cincinnati.
Congressional District 2: (Republicans) – Following her surprise
win in last year’s GOP primary and subsequent lackluster victory
over Hackett in the special election, incumbent Cong. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland)
has been a marked woman. She faces three challengers in her bid to win
a full term. Her biggest obstacle is former Cong. Bob McEwen (R-Cincinnati),
who finished second in the ’05 primary. The other two candidates
are James Constable of Fayetteville and Deborah Kraus of Union Township
in Clermont County; neither stand much chance of winning. Schmidt benefited
in last year’s primary from the nastiness of the race between presumptive
frontrunners McEwen and Pat DeWine, and she managed to stay largely
above the fray. While being the incumbent this time around affords Schmidt
advantages she did not enjoy last year – particularly in the areas
of fundraising and party establishment support – this time she’ll
have to go head-to-head against McEwen. The key in ‘06 should be
Hamilton County; it’s the only county in the seven-county district
where more than half of the votes cast in the ’05 GOP primary went
to candidates other than McEwen or Schmidt.
Congressional District 3: (Democrats) – David Fierst (D-Centerville),
Charles Sanders (D-Waynesville), and Stephanie Studebaker (D-Centerville)
battle for the right to take on sitting Cong. Mike Turner (R-Dayton)
in November. Sanders is a former mayor of Waynesville who challenged
former Cong. Rob Portman unsuccessfully in 1998, 2000, 2002, and 2004
in the 2nd congressional district. Attorney Fierst and veterinarian
Studebaker are first-time candidates. Whoever wins will face an uphill
battle against Turner, who won his first two elections with 59% and
62% of the vote.
Congressional District 4: (Republicans) – The decision by Cong.
Mike Oxley (R-Findlay) not to seek another term has resulted in a field
of six candidates seeking the GOP nomination. The frontrunner is State
Sen. Jim Jordan (R-Urbana), a member of the Ohio General Assembly since
1995. He is the only current officeholder in the race and his state
senate district includes four of the 11 counties in the congressional
district. In addition, his victory in the 2000 12th Ohio Senate district
primary over Jim Buchy demonstrated his ability to put together an effective
grassroots campaign. Three candidates – Frank Guglielmi, James
Stahl, and Charles Weasel – hail from Findlay, in Republican vote
rich Hancock County. Guglielmi, a banker and chairman of the Development
Finance Advisory Council of the Ohio Department of Development, has
the personal financial resources to fund his own campaign and has already
aired two weeks of radio ads district-wide. Kevin Nestor is the president
of the Mansfield-Richland Area Chamber of Commerce and is one of two
candidates from Mansfield. The other is Iraq War veteran Nathan Martin.
Guglielmi’s resources make him the most likely candidate to emerge
as Jordan’s main rival.
Congressional District 6: (Democrats) – State Sen. Charlie Wilson’s
(D-St. Clairsville) failure to qualify for the ballot has made what
should have been a walk in the park anything but. Neither Bob Carr (D-Wellsville)
nor John Luchansky (D-Poland) are viable candidates…but both of
their names will appear on the ballot. Wilson is faced with having to
wage a write-in campaign, which means he’ll have to spend money
he didn’t anticipate spending in the primary. National Democrats
are, of course, unhappy with this snafu, but Wilson is still their strongest
candidate to hold the open 6th congressional district and they’ll
invest what it takes to make sure he wins. How much is unclear but,
in a district that stretches across 12 counties with eight different
types of voting machines, includes four television media markets, and
will see a minimum of at least 60,000 Democratic primary votes cast,
you can bet it won’t be cheap.
Congressional District 6: (Republicans) – He has three primary
opponents, but State Rep. Chuck Blasdel (R-East Liverpool) should have
no trouble winning an outright majority of the GOP votes cast in May.
Pastor Tim Ginter of East Liverpool, Noble County Commissioner Danny
Harmon, and former Belmont County Sheriff Richard Stobbs round out the
field.
Congressional District 7: (Democrats) – Retired Air Force Major
William Conner (D-Beavercreek) and Dan Saks (D-Springfield), a computer
consultant, are the candidates. The winner meets Cong. Dave Hobson (R-Springfield).
Congressional District 9: (Republicans) – Two years ago, Cong.
Marcy Kaptur (D-Toledo) faced her most serious opposition in years in
Republican Larry Kaczala, the Lucas County auditor, whom she clobbered
68%-32%. As a result, the GOP field of potential challengers to Kaptur
is once again bereft of a top-tier candidate. Her opponent will be either
her 1998 and 2002 general election opponent Ed Emery (R-Sylvania), Dirk
Kubala (R-Toledo), or Bradley Leavitt (R-Toledo).
Congressional District 10: (Democrats) – Unable to unseat Cong.
Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland) running in the general election as an
independent candidate, Barbara Ferris (D-Parma) hopes she’ll have
better luck beating him in the Democratic primary. Highly unlikely,
though she’ll probably get more than the 6% of the vote she got
as an independent in 2004.
Congressional District 10: (Republicans) – Maybe they see how Ed
Herman, Kucinich’s ’04 general election opponent, parlayed
the name recognition and campaign experience gained from his congressional
bid into frontrunner status in an open Ohio House seat this year and
think that running against Kucinich is a wise move. How else to explain
that two Republicans are dueling for the right to take on an incumbent
they’re highly unlikely to defeat? Former Bush administration appointee
Mike Dovilla of Middleburg Heights, who also served as a member of U.S.
Sen. George Voinovich’s staff, and Jason Werner of North Olmsted,
founder of a mortgage industry business, are the two candidates.
Congressional District 12: (Democrats) – Two Democrats that filed
for the Democratic nomination have withdrawn, leaving four seeking the
nomination against incumbent Cong. Pat Tiberi (R-Galena). The four are:
Ed Brown (D-Columbus), Tiberi’s ’02 & ’04 general
election opponent, Michael Reilly (D-Powell), Patricia Shaffer (D-Dublin),
and Bob Shamansky (D-Columbus). Shamansky represented this district
for one term after unseating then-incumbent Republican Cong. Sam Devine
in 1980 and is the favorite for the Democratic nomination. Even if he
wins in May, Shamansky is not likely to repeat his 1980 general election
upset in 2006.
Congressional District 13: (Democrats) – It’s a free-for-all!
The decision by Cong. Sherrod Brown to run for the Senate has brought
out 13 candidates, including eight Democrats. The top-tier includes
former Cong. Tom Sawyer of Akron, former State Rep. Betty Sutton of
Chardon, and shopping mall heiress Capri Cafaro, now of Sheffield. Longer-shots
are Elyria Mayor Bill Grace, former Cleveland City Councilman Gary Kucinich
(brother of Cong. Dennis Kucinich), and Richfield Mayor Michael Lyons.
Also in the race are frequent candidate Norbert Dennerll of Westlake
and attorney John Wolfe of Akron.
Congressional District 13: (Republicans) – Whichever candidate
emerges from the Democratic primary will almost certainly face Lorain
Mayor Craig Foltin. He’s not the only GOP candidate, but he’s
the one backed by the national party. Other candidates are Pastor Paul
Burtzlaff of Avon Lake, C.J. DeLorean of Medina, Akron marketing consultant
David McGrew, and businessman Joe Ortega of Strongsville, who unsuccessfully
sought the GOP nomination two years ago.
Congressional District 14: (Democrats) – Cong. Steve LaTourette
(R-Painesville) will face the winner of a three-way Demcoratic primary.
The candidates are frequent candidate Dale Blanchard of Solon, Case
Western Reserve Law School professor Lewis Katz, and meteorologist Palmer
Peterson. Though the 14th district leans only marginally Republican,
LaTourette will be the clear favorite against whichever Democrat candidate
prevails in May.
Congressional District 16: (Democrats) – Ashland attorney Tom Mason,
who ran unsuccessfully against State Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-Lakeville) in
both 2002 and 2004, will meet Wooster resident Thomas Shaw in the Democratic
primary for the right to take on incumbent Cong. Ralph Regula (R-Navarre)
in November. Neither would pose a real threat to Regula.
Congressional District 16: (Republicans) – Cong. Ralph Regula (R-Navarre)
is 81 years old and was first elected to Congress in 1972. There has
been much speculation that he would retire from Congress in 2008, and
there are a number of Republicans that are interested in succeeding
him. One, Ashland County Commissioner Matt Miller, has decided not to
wait to see whether or not Regula calls it quits two years hence; he’s
challenging Regula in the GOP primary this year. The 28-year old Miller
was thought to have a bright future in GOP politics, and some are questioning
why he’s making such a risky move as to take on a sitting incumbent.
Expect Regula to capture the nomination and win re-election.
Congressional District 17: (Democrats) – With Cong. Bob Ney (R-Heath)
under investigation for his ties to scandal-plagued lobbyist Jack Abramoff,
a field of four Democrats filed to oppose him in November. One, Ralph
Applegate of Columbus, lives outside the district and has run unsuccessfully
in at least two other congressional districts in the past. Joe Sulzer,
a former state representative and the current mayor of Chillicothe,
and attorney Zach Space of Dover appear to be the frontrunners. Sulzer
was encouraged to run by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
and had $222,000 on-hand at the end of 2005. Space had only $69,000
on-hand but has been endorsed by the United Auto Workers, several local
union organizations, and the Tuscarawas County Democratic Party. He
also claims to have support from six of the district’s 16 Democratic
county party chairs. The conventional wisdom is that the fourth candidate,
elected state board of education member Jennifer Stewart of Zanesville,
won’t win but that she could spell the difference.
Congressional District 17: (Republicans) – James Brodbelt Harris
(R-Zanesville) is the operator of an investment firm and is the lone
GOP challenger to incumbent Cong. Bob Ney (R-Heath). Harris claims to
be a descendant of Ohio’s 44th governor, Andrew Lintner Harris,
a Republican who served from 1906-1909. The Republican Party, at all
levels, has rallied around Ney and continues to support him despite
the Abramoff investigation. GOP voters likely will, too.
OHIO’S
RISING POLITICAL STARS
The Hotline, a daily news briefing on politics and campaigns read regularly
by Washington, D.C. political insiders, recently updated its list of
Ohio’s political “up-and-comers.” The publication provides
an update on the 16 individuals that it’s been tracking in the
Buckeye State since 2003 and adds nine new “stars to watch in the
future.”
Of the individuals previously on the list, several have seen their stars
fall in the past two years, including former Hamilton County Prosecutor
Mike Allen, former Speaker of the House Larry Householder, Lucas County
Commissioner Maggie Thurber, and former Cleveland Mayor Jane Campbell.
The nine newcomers to the list include five Democrats and four Republicans,
and all but one are currently serving in the Ohio General Assembly.
The Hotline’s new additions are: State Sens. Marc Dann (D-Youngstown),
Jeff Jacobson (R-Brookville), Jim Jordan (R-Urbana), and Kim Zurz (D-Uniontown),
State Reps. John Boccieri (D-New Middletown), Todd Book (D-McDermott),
Jon Husted (R-Kettering), and Mary Taylor (R-Uniontown), and Franklin
County Treasurer Richard Cordray (D-Grove City).
Click
here to see the full story.
AFL-CIO
BOOSTS POLITICAL SPENDING FOR ‘06
Last year, several major national labor unions, including the Service
Employees International Union, the Teamsters, and the United Food and
Commercial Workers, defected from the AFL-CIO and formed the Change
to Win Coalition. One of the reasons they gave for breaking away was
frustration with the AFL-CIO’s penchant for spending increasingly
more money and attention on politics in support of unsuccessful Democrat
candidates. (See August 4, 2005 The Political
Edge for story on labor breakup.)
So how has the AFL-CIO responded? By announcing late last month that
it will again increase the amount of money it will spend on politics.
The union’s leaders voted to authorize spending up to $40 million
in 2006, the group’s most ever in a mid-term election year. The
amount is a $5 million increase over the $35 million spent in 2002 and
comes despite a 25 percent reduction in the AFL-CIO’s budget.
None of the money will go directly to candidates; it will all be spent
to organize and mobilize rank-and-file union members. Spending will
be concentrated in 15 Senate races, 40 House races, and eight gubernatorial
races in 21 states, including Ohio.
As they always are, the AFL-CIO’s political efforts will be conducted
in a non-partisan fashion, according to President John Sweeney.
Also announced last month was a partnership agreement between the AFL-CIO
and the National Education Association (NEA). Though the NEA will remain
independent, its local unions may now become affiliated with the AFL-CIO’s
local labor councils. The practical effects will be that the two groups
will be better able to collaborate on common goals, teachers will have
more clout in their political and lobbying efforts, and the AFL-CIO
may regain some of its influence lost last year in the aftermath of
the defections.
|
