ON THE SIDE. . .

ON THE SIDE. . .
This and that from the world of Valley politics.
CHOICE OF SUCCESSOR: Should state Rep. Sylvester D. Patton Jr. win the 2005 Youngstown mayoral race forcing him to resign early, he already has a successor in mind to replace him in the state House: Youngstown Councilman Rufus Hudson, D-2nd. Patton is running for his final term in the House in November, barred from seeking a fifth term in 2006 because of the state's term limits law.
If things go according to his plan, Patton has no intention of finishing out the last year of a fourth term should he defeat Republican Nicolas Keller next month. Patton wants to run for mayor next year in what is expected to be a crowded field. Mayor George M. McKelvey cannot run again because of the city's term limits law.
Should Patton win the mayoral race, there would be one year left on his term, and he says the Ohio House Democratic Caucus should appoint Hudson to the seat.
Even so, Patton, who is black, said Hudson, who is also black, would have difficulty holding on to the seat in the 2006 election. Patton said only 29 percent of the voters in the 60th Ohio House District are black. The white majority in the district -- that includes Youngstown, Campbell, Lowellville, Struthers, Coitsville and a portion of Austintown -- would probably not support another black candidate for the job.
"It's a tough district for any minority to hold," he said.
Patton said state Sen. Robert F. Hagan, who is term-limited out of his seat in 2006, would beat Hudson or any black candidate for the House seat in the 2006 election.
skolnick@vindy.com