Ohio House races to watch
Recommended article pointed out to me by a friend, the Dispatch has a piece on the Ohio Houses to Watch — LINK — One local race is listed in the “Tier 2″ category of a district in play, but where the party in control is at least a slight favorite.
46th District, Lucas County. Occupant: Rep. Barbara Sears (R). Though she won a whopping 14-point victory in 2008 in a district that split almost evenly between Obama and McCain, Sears appears to be the most vulnerable House Republican incumbent on the ballot. Democrats have pounded her with some nasty television ads, and they say their candidate, former Maumee Mayor Harry Barlos, is a quality, business-friendly Democrat. Both sides are still spending here.
Categories: Politics
Barlos is the best Democrat that could have run in this race and would have won in 2008 as Sears was not an elected incumbent and it was more of a Democratic year.
If Maumee goes for Barlos big (65% +) and he holds onto the old Maumee residents now living in Monclova Township, Waterville and Springfield that voted for him when he was Mayor, he has a real shot.
Barlos won this district in 96 for Clerk of Courts and 04, even when he was losing the rest of the County for Commissioner. It’s pretty reasonable to say that virtually every voter in this district who has been a voter in the district for more than 15 years has voted for Barlos. He won big in 96 and for certain got most democrats and independents. In 2004, he lost because the democrats abandoned him but republicans and independents helped keep it reasonably close.
I think he loses narrowly but if he runs again in 2012 and the political winds blow in a different direction, he’ll win.
by BG Democrat on Oct 30, 2010 at 6:00 pm