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Tuesday, November 29, 2005

OH-Gov: Coleman Drops Out of Dem Primary

Posted by DavidNYC

Michael Coleman, the mayor of Columbus, has dropped out of the running in the Democratic gubernatorial primary in Ohio. This means Ted Strickland, who represents OH-06, will be our nominee. I haven't been following this race too closely, so I don't have an opinion as to who would have been the stronger candidate. There wasn't much polling, either - a Columbus Dispatch poll from September showed a close primary race, but with lots of undecideds. Of course, this was the Dispatch's notorious, wildly wrong mail-in poll, so to me, those numbers mean nothing.

Of concern is the district Strickland is leaving behind. Superribbie ranks it as our fifth most-endangered Dem-held seat. And according to Dave Leip's numbers, the district went narrowly for Bush last year (by less than a percentage point). Thanks to Ohio's outrageous gerrymander, that actually makes it Ohio's sixth-most Democratic district. Our guy here is State Sen. Charlie Wilson, whom Superribbie calls an "excellent candidate." (The DCCC also lists one Diane Murphy as running for this seat, but I can't seem to find a website for her.)

Posted at 07:25 PM in 2006 Elections - State, Ohio | Technorati

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Comments

I don't know much about Charlie Wilson, but given the demographics of OH-06, I'm not seriously worried about it slipping into Republican hands. If this is our fifth most endangered seat, then I'd say were sitting pretty strong in 2006. In local races, Democrats tend to fare much better than Kerry did here...particularly in the Steubenville area.

Is there any chance that Mike Coleman's decision to abandon the Governor's race could indicate a desire to challenge Deborah Pryce in OH-15? Seems like Coleman's chances would be very good. Now if only we could find such a painless solution to the Ohio Senate battle....

Posted by: Mark at November 29, 2005 09:18 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

I dunno, he dropped out because of family pressures--his wife was arrested for DUI charges. Seems wrong for him to jump into another race when he has family needs to attend to.

Posted by: HellofaSandwich at November 29, 2005 09:45 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

and Mary Jo Kilroy is running in OH-15 too

Posted by: RBH at November 29, 2005 10:41 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

The only thing that would lead to a Republican win in Strickland's district at this time would be Blackwell counting the votes.

Posted by: DownWithTyranny at November 30, 2005 12:05 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

Does anybody wish to check Ohio Law when it comes to Blackwell holding office while running for Governor?

I know somebody got Katherine Harris to resign in 2001 due to a law with her running for Congress while Secretary of State.

Posted by: RBH at November 30, 2005 12:59 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

Mark,
I have been pushing for Coleman to run against Pryce for 6 months now. He has been in a whirlwind of semi-scandal lately, but that isn't why he dropped out and it certainly wouldn't hurt him in the OH-15 race. Kilroy has run there before and guess what?? She didn't win, and Coleman would be much stronger. As to OH-06, this is rough-and-tumble blue collar/gun slinging area where a socially conservative good ole' boy Democrat like Wilson makes this seat not as vulnerable as it seems.

Posted by: OH-09Dem at November 30, 2005 12:55 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

Yeah, I've checked into it Blackwell holding office while running for governor. I am watching this man's every move. Taft was in the same position in 1998 — running for governor while Sec'y of State. No one seems to think there was any hanky-panky in the count then but unfortunately, yes, Blackwell WILL be in charge of counting the votes next year and given his record, he should excuse himself. He won't however. This man actively campaigned (with robocalls) this fall against Issues #2-#5 (Election Reform!); he actively campaigned last year for Issue #1 (anti all gay unions of any kind conceivable). He is a walking, talking conflict of interest.

Posted by: Ansatasia P at November 30, 2005 02:27 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

Coleman and Strickland both would have been good candidates, both having elements (very different ones) that would appeal to independent and even Republican voters. I had made up my mind to sit on the fence until the primaries and focus on working for Hackett for Senate. I liked both when I heard them talk. I think Strickland will be able to counter without pandering the inane gutter direction the Republicans are already dragging the gubernatorial campaign, with attorney-general Jim Petro trying to out-"values" tool-of-the-religious-right Ken Blackwell with revolting commercials featuring framed family photos and closeups of the Bible and lots of palaver about families and respect for "life" being the basis of everything he stands for.

ugh.

Posted by: Ansatasia P at November 30, 2005 02:30 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

I'm reading today that Jerry Springer is still talking about a possible run for Governor or Senator in Ohio. What's up with that? I'm assuming he won't be taken seriously, but is there any risk he could run as a third-party candidate for either race after the Democratic primary?

Posted by: Mark at November 30, 2005 04:43 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment