Congressional districts represented by incumbent Democrats Betty Sutton and Dennis Kucinich will be erased under a new remap of congressional districts that will be unveiled in Columbus.WASHINGTON, D.C. - Democrats will lose two congressional seats in Northeast Ohio under a remapping plan that will be introduced in Ohio's legislature this week. But they will gain a new seat in Columbus that's being designed to shift Republicans who now represent the city into safer suburban seats.
Republican and Democratic sources say that in Northeast Ohio, the plan will shift Copley Township Democrat Betty Sutton into a largely Republican district that's being constructed to favor the re-election of freshman GOP Rep. Jim Renacci of Wadsworth.
The western Cuyahoga County power base of Cleveland Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich will become part of a district that snakes along Lake Erie from Toledo and is designed to favor the re-election of longtime Toledo Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur.
Sutton and Kaptur indicated Monday that they will continue to seek re-election, regardless of what redistricting holds.
"While we haven't seen a map, Betty Sutton is running because the stakes are at an all-time high for the hard-working, middle-class people she has been fighting for and representing from Northeast Ohio," said her spokesman, Anthony DeAngelo. "She's prepared for whatever lies ahead."
Kaptur is a senior member of the influential House Appropriations Committee and is "not about to walk away from that," says her spokesman, Steve Fought. The new district along Lake Erie would contain enough of Kucinich's base for him to make a strong re-election bid, although Kaptur would be a likely primary favorite because of her seniority and Kucinich's penchant for controversial actions, such as his two longshot White House bids, his efforts to impeach vice president Dick Cheney and his visits with Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
"In an ideal world, these would be competitive districts, but the people drawing these don't care about competition," Fought said. "They care about eliminating competition, and drawing districts that favor one party or another. The way to favor Republicans is to pack as many Democrats into a district as they can, and that is what they are doing in Columbus and in Northern Ohio, too."
Kucinich spokesman Nathan White said his boss won't comment on the redistricting plan until the Ohio legislature acts on it. Kucinich has said he does not want to battle another Democratic incumbent and has expressed interest in seeking office in Washington state, which will have two open, Democratic-leaning congressional seats in 2012.
Ohio must eliminate two of its 18 congressional seats because its population is growing more slowly than other states. Republicans who took over the Ohio General Assembly during the last election have control over the process.
Details of the map were still being finalized on Monday. The public unveiling of the map is expected Tuesday afternoon at a state government committee meeting, according to Mike Dittoe, spokesman for House Speaker William G. Batchelder. State lawmakers are expected to approve the map later this week, perhaps as soon as Thursday.
Republicans -- who now hold 13 of Ohio's seats -- will give up one of those seats by consolidating Dayton-area turf currently represented by GOP Reps. Mike Turner and Steve Austria into a district that includes parts of Montgomery and Fairfield counties, and all of Greene, Fayette and Pickaway counties. Republican House Speaker John Boehner will pick up parts of Montgomery County that he does not currently represent.
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To enhance the re-election prospects of Columbus-area GOP incumbents Patrick Tiberi and Steve Stivers, both their districts will be redrawn to allow creation of a new Democratic seat in Franklin County. Potential candidates for that seat include Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, former Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy, former congressional candidate Paula Brooks and former Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner.
Sources say that Tiberi's district will stretch into Richland and Marion counties, and include all of Licking, Delaware and Morrow counties. Stivers will have a peculiarly shaped district that includes Union, Madison and some of Clark counties. Stivers, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, will retain a part of Columbus that contains several bank headquarters.
Closer to home, Warrensville Heights Democratic Rep. Marcia Fudge's district in eastern Cuyahoga County will be stretched down the I-77 corridor to include parts of Akron that are predominantly African-American, preserving the state's only majority minority district.
The district represented by Bainbridge Township Republican Rep. Steve LaTourette will pick up parts of Cuyahoga County he does not currently represent, including Brecksville, Independence, Lyndhurst and Mayfield Heights, as well as communities in Summit, Portage and Trumbull counties.
The district Renacci represents will stretch farther north. He will lose parts of Stark County to Holmes County GOP Rep. Bob Gibbs, a freshman whose district is also shifting north as its southern portions get divided between Tiberi and Stivers. Alliance, the home of Renacci's Democratic predecessor, John Boccieri, will be shifted into the district currently represented by Niles Democrat Tim Ryan. Stark County will be split among Gibbs, Renacci and Ryan.
Republicans are also trying to strengthen the GOP leanings of the district represented by freshman Rep. Bill Johnson of Marietta, which now stretches like a string bean along the Ohio River. Johnson's new district will include Carroll, Harrison and Guernsey counties, and parts of Tuscarawas and Muskingum counties.
Even though Republicans are trying to draw districts where their members can gain easier re-election, the National Republican Congressional Committee on Monday selected Johnson, Gibbs and Renacci to participate in its "Patriot Program" to bolster Republicans who may face tough battles.
"An iron-clad campaign spells defeat for Democrats vying to return Nancy Pelosi as Speaker," NRCC Deputy Chairman Greg Walden, a GOP congressman from Oregon, said in announcing their selection.
Plain Dealer Reporter Aaron Marshall contributed to this report.