6TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 2 candidates total $450,000 in war chests

By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
Two candidates running for the 6th Congressional District already have raised close to $450,000 combined for the 2006 race.
Congressional candidates don't have to file their third-quarter financial reports -- July 1 to Sept. 30 -- with the Federal Election Commission until Saturday.
But the campaign of Charles Blasdel of East Liverpool, the Ohio House Speaker pro tempore, a Republican candidate for the post, announced his congressional committee raised more than $230,000 just a little more than two months after getting into the race.
In comparison, the last Republican to seek this seat -- former Columbiana County Commissioner Michael Halleck in 2002 -- raised $188,956 in his failed bid.
Republicans running
Blasdel, R-1st, is among four Republicans running for the congressional seat that takes in 12 counties, including all of Columbiana County and a portion of Mahoning County.
The other Republican candidates are Noble County Commissioner Danny Harmon, Tim Ginter of East Liverpool, and Richard Holt of Lawrence County.
Harmon already filed his third quarter report with the FEC. He raised $12,371.91 as of Sept. 30, with $7,931.91 coming from him.
The Blasdel statement was released through the National Republican Congressional Committee.
The NRCC is neutral during primaries. But Ed Patru, a committee spokesman, said the NRCC will release information on occasion from candidates before the primary "when it's newsworthy. It's a credible amount of money raised."
Support
Blasdel has the support of the Ohio Republican congressional delegation, Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert and NRCC Chairman Thomas Reynolds.
Patru said the Ohio 6th District is the Republicans' No. 1 targeted open seat in the country. U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland, a Lisbon Democrat, isn't seeking re-election next year, opting to run for governor.
Democratic candidate
On the Democratic side, state Sen. Charles Wilson of St. Clairsville said his third-quarter financial report will show his campaign raised about $212,000. Of that amount, Wilson lent $95,000 to his campaign.
"Making those loans shows my commitment to being a candidate for this position," Wilson said.
Wilson and Blasdel say if the other candidate wants a financial shootout, he will get one.
"I look forward to hanging with him," Wilson said. "It's not like other races where the Republicans can spend three or four times more than the Democrat. Our goal is to match my opponent dollar for dollar."
Wilson said he expects to have $400,000 raised by the end of this year, and $600,000 by the May 2006 primary.
No financial goals
Blasdel said he doesn't have financial goals for his campaign.
"We'll raise as much as we can," he said. "When you run against a millionaire, you need every dollar you can get."
Unlike Wilson, Blasdel hasn't put a significant amount of his own money into his campaign. Blasdel contributed $2,100 to his campaign.
Because Blasdel has a primary, he will have to spend some of his money on that race, Wilson said.
Besides Wilson, the only Democrat planning to run for this seat next year is Diane DiCarlo Murphy of Beaver Township, who Strickland overwhelmingly defeated in the 2004 Democratic primary. Murphy spent about $3,000 in her failed challenge to Strickland last year.
Boccieri faces decision
State Rep. John Boccieri of New Middletown, D-61st, plans to make a decision on his political future after the Nov. 8 election. Boccieri is mulling runs for the 6th Congressional District or the Ohio Senate 33rd District seats.
A statewide issue on the November ballot would change Ohio's congressional districts in time for the 2008 election. If the issue passes, Boccieri said, he expects his home would be in the same congressional district as U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Niles, D-17th, and he wouldn't run against the incumbent.
skolnick@vindy.com