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Endorsement error to be fixed
Photo
Congressman Tim Ryan
The Republican candidate says the union ignored his calls about the endorsement.
YOUNGSTOWN — An employee union is demanding U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan’s Republican opponent remove “false information” from his Web site that the union and its retiree chapter endorsed him.
But Republican Duane V. Grassell of Mogadore, challenging Ryan in the 17th Congressional District, said he received a letter stating he was endorsed by the American Federal of State, County and Municipal Employees Ohio Council 8 and its retiree Chapter 1184.
John J. Filak, AFSCME’s Youngstown regional director, acknowledged a mistake was probably made and Grassell accidentally received a letter of endorsement.
Filak sent a letter, dated Friday, to Grassell and copies to three newspapers, including The Vindicator, demanding Grassell remove the endorsements from his Web site — grassellforcongress.info/ — or the unions would “take all appropriate action.”
Grassell said he didn’t receive the letter Monday — The Vindicator received it that day — and based on what a reporter told him about its contents, he instructed his webmaster to remove the endorsements.
“If this was told to me directly, I would have taken it down immediately,” he said. “... It was their failing and not mine.”
Grassell said when he received the letter with the endorsement, he was surprised because unions typically endorse Democrats. The unions are endorsing Ryan, a Democrat from Niles, running for his fourth term in the U.S. House in that race.
Grassell said he left a telephone message for Robert A. Davis, AFSCME’s political and legislative director, when he received the endorsement letter, dated July 25, and another one a week later to find out if he actually received the endorsement.
When Davis didn’t return the calls, Grassell said he had his webmaster put the endorsements on his Web site about a month after getting the letter.
“He’s clearly not endorsed,” Filak said. “Did he [post the endorsement] in good faith? It’s possible a mistake was made.”
CQ Politics, a Web site that covers Congress, lists the 17th District seat as “safe Democrat.” Ryan was re-elected to his third two-year term in 2006 with 80.25 percent of the vote.
The district includes portions of Mahoning, Trumbull, Portage and Summit counties.