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A Democratic candidate pulls out of the 6th Congressional District primary
LISBON
A former Meigs County commissioner is out as a candidate in the Democratic primary for the 6th Congressional District seat.
Michael D. Davenport of Pomeroy, also a former Meigs Democratic party chairman, officially withdrew Monday leaving only one candidate in the Democratic Primary for the position.
The move was expected for more than a month as Davenport filed as a backup plan in case Belpre Mayor Michael L. Lorentz, the Ohio Democratic Party’s preferred candidate, somehow didn’t get certified to the ballot. But after Lorentz and Davenport were certified in late December by the board of elections in Columbiana County, the largest county in the 6th District, Davenport didn’t withdraw.
Because Davenport waited this long to get out of the race, his name will appear on the Democratic primary ballot, said Adam Booth, Columbiana County Board of Elections director. The deadline for candidates to get their names off the March 15 primary ballot was Jan. 5 under state law, Booth said.
Because Davenport formally withdrew, however, no votes for him will be counted, and notices informing voters of that will be posted at polling locations and sent with absentee ballots, Booth said.
It won’t be an issue as Lorentz is the only Democrat on that party’s primary ballot in the 18-county 6th District, which also includes southern Mahoning County.
Lorentz was re-elected mayor of Belpre, a Washington County city of about 6,500 residents, two months ago. He’s served as mayor since January 2008. Before that, he spent two years as a city councilman and 14 years on that city’s school board.
Running for Congress “is a huge step from where I am today, but I truly believe I’m up for the challenge,” Lorentz said.
U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson, a Marietta Republican, is seeking his fourth two-year term in the Republican-leaning district. He is running unopposed in his party’s primary.