IW’s Poindexter wins crowded Congressional primary
Ironworkers Local 17 member Brian Poindexter and former U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown both won their Democratic primary races on May 5 and will now prepare to face their Republican opponents in the November General Election.
Poindexter, who also serves as a Brook Park City Councilman, outperformed the seven other Democrats running to unseat incumbent U.S. Rep. Max Miller (R-Rocky River), who represents District 7, and had no primary challenger.
The 7th Congressional district includes southern and western Cuyahoga County, Medina and Wayne Counties, and a portion of northern Holmes County.
According to unofficial election results released by the Ohio Secretary of State’s office, Poindexter earned just over 23,000 votes (37 percent), with the next closest competitor being Ed FitzGerald, who garnered more than 13,000 votes (21 percent). No other candidate in this crowded Democratic Primary field had more than 7,600 votes, according to unofficial results.
Poindexter admitted he was not expecting the level of Democrat voter support he received.
“To win by such a large margin, in a race with seven other candidates, whom I have a great amount of respect for, is surreal,” he said. “To know that our message of fighting for workers is resonating in our district brings me great pride.”
One of his biggest takeaways from the primary campaign was messaging. Poindexter believes his campaign points are hitting home with voters. “We’ll continue to build our campaign around the issues facing working families,” he said. “Our message is uniting because it affects people from all over the district, all political leanings and all demographics. We all have to work for a living, and that is becoming harder and harder for too many of us.”
With his spot in the General Election secure, Poindexter is prepared to work harder over the coming months to show the voters of District 7 that he is different from anyone else in Congress – he is a regular person, just like the voters.
“Too often politicians get caught up in who or what they’re fighting against that they forget what they’re fighting for,” he said. “I am fighting to bring relief to the working people–period. I hope the voters in my district see me as someone they can count on to fight for them, whether they’re a Democrat, Republican or anything in between.”
The General Election will occur on Nov. 3.
On the local level, two union tradesmen were running for county commissioner positions in Ohio, but both came up short.
In Lorain County, IBEW member Brian Baker lost a close race to Carolyn Y. White by less than 400 votes, according to unofficial results.
The Scioto County Commissioners Democrat primary was not as close, as Laborers Local 83 President Adrian Harrison fell by nearly 800 votes to incumbent Merit Smith, according to unofficial results.