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Five candidates -- three Republicans and two Democrats --filed for the 6th Congressional District seat to be vacated in a few months by Bill Johnson, while incumbent Republican Dave Joyce in the 14th District faces three opponents in the GOP primary as he seeks his seventh term in the House of Representatives.
Wednesday was the filing deadline for candidates wanting to run in the March 19, 2024 primary. Independent candidates have until the day before the primary to file nominating petitions to qualify for the Nov. 5, 2024, general election.
Johnson, a Republican who was living in Marietta and just purchased a home in Canfield, plans to resign in February or early March from Congress to become president of Youngstown State University.
This is the first election since 2006 in which the 6th Congressional District doesn't have an incumbent.
The open seat attracted three Republicans, including two current officeholders: state Sen. Michael Rulli of Salem, state Rep. Reggie Stoltzfus of Paris Township and Rick Tsai of East Palestine.
Rulli, serving his second four-year term, is considered the early favorite and has the endorsements of the Republican chairmen in Mahoning and Columbiana - the most-populous and third most-populous counties in the district.
Stoltzfus, serving his third two-year term in the Ohio House, has the endorsement of the Republican chairwoman in Stark, the second most-populous county in the 11-county district.
Tsai, a first-time candidate, is a chiropractor who's gained some national attention for speaking out against Norfolk Southern, the railroad company that had a massive derailment Feb. 3 in his hometown.
The congressional seat will be vacant for several months between the time of Johnson's resignation and when a special election would be held to fill his unexpired term.
The 6th District had an 18% advantage for Republicans based on voting trends in partisan statewide elections. Because of that, Democrats aren't focused on this election.
The two Democrats to file are Michael L. Kripchak of Youngstown and Rylan Z. Finzer of Bedford Heights, which is outside the congressional district. But congressional candidates only need to live in the state to run.
Finzer owns Finzer's Finest, a marijuana dispensary in Bedford Heights.
Finzer used to live in Perry Township in Stark County and finished a distant last in a three-person race in 2019 for trustee in that township, receiving 10.6% of the vote.
Kripchak filed for the congressional seat in the 2022 Democratic primary, but wasn't permitted on the ballot because of errors with his nominating petitions.
Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, would schedule the special primary and general election after Johnson's official resignation.
The timing of Johnson's resignation means a special primary for the remainder of his unexpired term can't be held at the same time as the March 19, 2024 primary for the full two-year term starting in January 2025.
Though DeWine can schedule the special elections at any time, he has planned previous ones for congressional vacancies during the same months as typical elections: May (during nonpresidential years), August and November.
There is the possibility of a special primary in May and a general election in August, or an August primary and a November general election, though nothing has been determined.
Under the latter scenario, there would be two general elections for the seat in November: one for the full two-year term and one to fill Johnson's unexpired term for about six weeks, depending on the certification of the results.
14TH DISTRICT
Joyce, R-Bainbridge, is seeking his seventh two-year term representing the 14th District.
Three Republicans filed to challenge him in the March 19, 2024, primary, but no Democrats filed.
Joyce had $2,297,087 in his campaign fund as of Sept. 30, the most recent filing deadline.
The district includes all of Trumbull, Ashtabula, Lake and Geauga counties and all but two communities in Portage County.
Trumbull is the district's second most-populous county behind Lake. Candidates filed nominating petitions with the Lake County Board of Elections.
The district has a 10% Republican advantage based on voting trends in partisan statewide elections in the past decade.
But Joyce beat Democrat Matt Kilboy by 23.5% in the 2022 election.
The lone Democrat to file was Brian Bob Kenteres of Mentor. He ran last year as a write-in candidate in a different congressional district and received 35 votes.
Joyce faces three Republicans in his party's primary.
They are: Elayne Cross of Kent, Ken Polke of Saybrook and Mark Zetzer of Russell.
Cross is the vice chairwoman of the Portage County Republican Party as well as an author and motivational speaker. She previously served on the Portage County Board of Elections.
Polke, a former dentist, ran for the 32nd Ohio Senate District seat in the 2020 Republican primary, losing by 39.2%. Polke unsuccessfully sought to run in 2010 for a congressional seat in Colorado and is a former preseason quarterback for the Cleveland Browns years ago.
Zetzer ran in 2014 for a Cleveland-based congressional seat, losing by 59%.