Current:Home > NewsOhio GOP congressional primaries feature double votes and numerous candidates-InfoLens
Ohio GOP congressional primaries feature double votes and numerous candidates
View Date:2024-12-23 14:45:06
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio residents face two unique scenarios in this year’s congressional primaries: They’re being asked to cast two votes for one of the seats and choose one of 11 candidates for the other.
The Democratic primaries, while competitive, promise to be less nail-biting than the GOP contests, which feature a congested race into which nearly a dozen contenders have poured a combined $4.5 million.
Both districts, the 2nd and the 6th, lean conservative and are likely to go for Republican candidates in the fall.
The 6th District includes the village of East Palestine, which is still suffering from the effects of a toxic train derailment last year.
PLENTY TO CHOOSE FROM IN PRICEY SOUTHERN OHIO DISTRICT
Eleven Republicans will have their names on the primary ballot for the 2nd Congressional District, which extends from the eastern suburbs of Cincinnati to the West Virginia border. The winner will face Democrat Samantha Meadows in the November general election.
Two of the better-known candidates are state Sens. Shane Wilkin and Niraj Antani. Political newcomers include businessmen Dave Taylor and Larry Kidd, as well as retired U.S. Marine drill instructor Tim O’Hara. Taylor raised $1.7 million for his campaign and Larry Kidd raised $1.4 million, while O’Hara raised $1.3 million.
All five are supporters of former Republican President Donald Trump and are running on conservative platforms such as supporting gun rights and opposing abortion.
Breaking from the pack is Phil Heimlich. Heimlich, son of the doctor who invented the Heimlich Maneuver, is a moderate Republican who does not support Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee in this year’s presidential election.
ONE PRIMARY, TWO VOTES IN EAST PALESTINE’S DISTRICT
Constituents in the 6th Congressional District are being asked to vote not once, but twice, for a nominee to replace former U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson.
The first vote involves a June special election that will determine who fills out the rest of Johnson’s current term; the second is for the November general election that will determine who serves a full term in the district starting in January 2025. Voters may choose the same nominee for both elections.
Johnson, a Republican, resigned before his term ended to become president of Youngstown State University on Jan. 21, prompting Gov. Mike DeWine to schedule the summer special election.
In the heart of the district, which runs along the Ohio River in eastern Ohio, is East Palestine, which recently observed the one-year anniversary of a devastating toxic train derailment.
Republican Rick Tsai, a chiropractor from East Palestine, is running on the derailment issue. But he’s in a tough fight against two current lawmakers, state Rep. Reggie Stoltzfus and state Sen. Michael Rulli, both of whom are better funded and have secured key endorsements, including those from East Palestine officials.
The Democratic candidates running in the Republican-leaning district include Rylan Finzer, a small-business owner from Stark County, and Michael Kripchak, an Air Force veteran and restaurant worker from Youngstown.
___
Samantha Hendrickson is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
veryGood! (66641)
Related
- The 15 quickest pickup trucks MotorTrend has ever tested
- An arrest has been made in Tupac Shakur’s killing. Here’s what we know about the case and the rapper
- Subway franchise owners must pay workers nearly $1M - and also sell or close their stores
- Syrian Kurdish fighters backed by US troops say they’ve captured a senior Islamic State militant
- See Leonardo DiCaprio's Transformation From '90s Heartthrob to Esteemed Oscar Winner
- Shapiro Advisors Endorse Emissions Curbs to Fight Climate Change but Don’t Embrace RGGI Membership
- NY woman who fatally shoved singing coach, age 87, is sentenced to more time in prison than expected
- Lorenzo, a 180-pound Texas tortoise, reunited with owner after backyard escape
- Parts of Southern California under quarantine over oriental fruit fly infestation
- Biden Creates the American Climate Corps, 90 Years After FDR Put 3 Million to Work in National Parks
Ranking
- Avril Lavigne’s Ex Mod Sun Is Dating Love Is Blind Star Brittany Wisniewski, Debuts Romance With a Kiss
- Disney, DeSantis legal fights ratchet up as company demands documents from Florida governor
- What to know about student loan repayments during a government shutdown
- Group of homeless people sues Portland, Oregon, over new daytime camping ban
- Deebo Samuel explains 'out of character' sideline altercation with 49ers long snapper, kicker
- A doctor was caught in the crossfire and was among 4 killed in a gunbattle at a hospital in Mexico
- 'Wait Wait' for September 30, 2023: Live in LA with Bob and Erin Odenkirk!
- Apple says it will fix software problems blamed for making iPhone 15 models too hot to handle
Recommendation
-
NASCAR Cup Series Championship race 2024: Start time, TV, live stream, odds, lineup
-
Man tied to suspected gunman in killing of Tupac Shakur is indicted on murder charge
-
Watch livestream: Police give update on arrest of Duane Davis in Tupac Shakur's killing
-
James Dolan’s sketch of the Sphere becomes reality as the venue opens with a U2 show in Las Vegas
-
Bridgerton's Luke Newton Details His Physical Transformation for Season 3's Leading Role
-
A 'modern masterpiece' paints pandemic chaos on cloth made of fig-tree bark
-
Judge says she is ending conservatorship between former NFL player Michael Oher and Memphis couple
-
Thousands of cantaloupes sold in 19 states and DC recalled after potential salmonella link