OH-15 update

[Padfoot]

Franklin County Commissioner Paula Brooks has decided to end her primary campaign for the Democratic nominee in OH-15.  This leaves 2006 candidate Mary Jo Kilroy as the only Democrat currently running to challenge Republican Rep. Deborah Pryce.  Kilory fell 1000 votes short of beating Pryce in 2006 and she is looking for a rematch.

IMO Brooks would have been a better candidate.  Kilroy may have built up more name recognition but I don't think she is going to do any better than she did in 2006.  As a city Democrat she has little hope of swaying the rural voters who voted against her in Union and Madison Counties.  In addition Union and Madison are two of the most Republican counties in Ohio.  Union was one of only 16 counties that actually voted for Blackwell. 

Also, Pryce ran an effective campaign against Kilroy by bringing up some of the problems Columbus Schools had when Kilroy served on the School Board during the 1990's.  Kilroy will also find it more difficult to label Pryce as a rubber stamp Republican in 2008.  Pryce has abandoned her GOP leadership position and she has returned to being more moderate now that she doesn't have to toe the party line.

Brooks, on the other hand, could have actually cut into Pryce's support base among moderate suburban voters.  Both Pryce and Brooks live in Upper Arlington which is a large suburb of Columbus and Brooks was a city council member there from 1996-2004 before being elected to the Franklin County Board of Commissioners.  OH-15 contains most of the western suburbs of Columbus and if Brooks was able to market herself as a typical suburban woman she could have peeled off some voters in those areas.  Brooks also has a more impressive and extensive resume than Kilroy IMO.  This is based solely off of comparison between their bios on the Franklin County website though.

Personally I will be voting to re-elect Rep. Pryce in 2008 barring any crazy gaffes or especially unpleasant votes.  So far, however, she has mirrored my views on most issues that I care about so I don't expect her to let me down.  I could have possibly been swayed by a Brooks bid but unfortunately for Kilroy I'm not a big fan of rematches.

[socaldem]

When I saw Kilroy and Pryce debate, Pryce just ate her up.

From what I saw, Kilroy is neither charismatic nor convincing.  I don't expect her to fare any better against Pryce this year, especially since '06 was such a perfect storm situation for OH dems.

One thing that might change the dynamics is that in '06 African American turnout was abysmal.  In '08, its sure to be much-improved with either Obama or a Clinton likely leading the Democratic ticket.

Most of Columbus' black population, though, lies in OH-12, where I'd love to see Columbus Mayor Coleman give it a shot.

I'm really disappointed that Paula Brooks has chosen not to run.  I think she would have had a significantly better chance than Kilroy .  Of course, it may be smarter to wait until after the dem-favoring redistricting that should follow the 2010 census.

Meanwhile, I'm very excited about State Rep. Steve Driehaus in OH-01.  He's a better candidate than Cranley with roots in the more GOP region of the district.  Plus, Hamilton County is probably the only place in OH where statewide Dems did not overperform.  Plus increased turn-out in the city could make the difference there.

[Adlai Stevenson]

I remember reading that Brooks was a better candidate than Kilroy (possibly on here).  I quite admire Deborah Pryce, however, one of the few Republicans in Washington.  Hasn't she given up her leadership position now, meaning that she may find 2008 easier than 2006? 

[Padfoot]

I remember reading that Brooks was a better candidate than Kilroy (possibly on here).  I quite admire Deborah Pryce, however, one of the few Republicans in Washington.  Hasn't she given up her leadership position now, meaning that she may find 2008 easier than 2006? 

  Pryce has abandoned her GOP leadership position and she has returned to being more moderate now that she doesn't have to toe the party line.

You must have missed it in the post that started this thread.  I know it was long but you might want to try reading it before asking questions. 

You probably did hear that Brooks was better than Kilroy here as I believe I discussed the race briefly on another related thread when Brooks first announced she might run.  I'm too lazy to dig it up though.

And I agree with your opinion of Rep. Pryce.  She is one of the best Republicans and overall politicians in Washington.