Four candidates to challenge Boccieri for 16th District House seat.

CANTON — Two years after losing a stronghold, Republicans hope to knock off a freshman congressman and reclaim Ohio’s 16th District.

The party is banking on former Wadsworth mayor Jim Renacci to take back what once was theirs. But Renacci doesn’t have a cakewalk to November’s general election. First, he must clear the May 4 primary.

Former Ashland County commissioner Matt Miller will make another run for the seat, as will Canton’s Paul Schiffer, a radio talk show host who has run for several seats over the years. Joining the fray is Canton resident H. Doyle Smith.

One of those four Republicans will get the opportunity to challenge John Boccieri, a Democrat from Alliance who claimed the seat in 2008. Boccieri replaced Ralph Regula, a Republican who retired after 36 years in Congress. Regula followed Republican Frank T. Bow, who served nearly 22 years as the 16th District’s representative.

Two others — Daniel Deckler of Canton and James Liossis of Massillon — expressed interest in the seat, but now say they won’t file petitions when the Feb. 18 deadline comes.

Deckler said he decided to drop out after being told Republican party chairmen from the four counties covered by the 16th District preferred Renacci. “I decided to be a team player and help him out,” Deckler said.

Liossis cited job and family commitments as the reasons he dropped out. He’ll consider running again some day. In the mean time, he’s pulling for a Republican victory.

THE FAVORITE?

“Nine months ago, nobody knew who I was,” Renacci said.

These days plenty of folks know the 51-year-old businessman. In early January, the National Republican Congressional Committee ranked him as a “contender” in the party’s Young Guns program. That status means party leaders believe Renacci has the best shot of beating Boccieri in the general election.

The Young Guns program tracks the Republican Party’s strongest open-seat and challenger candidates in the country. Being listed as a contender is a sign Renacci already has built a campaign committee and reached fundraising goals.

Renacci “has already proven that he will be a formidable candidate,” RNCC Chairman Pete Sessions said in a news release issued by Renacci’s campaign.

But it is money, Miller contends, that has brought Renacci to the national party’s attention. The party believes Renacci can bring more money to the table, Miller said.

COMPARING FINANCES

Early finance reports support Miller’s claim. Renacci raised $203,000 during the third quarter of 2009, according to Federal Election Commission filings, and says he added $210,000 in the year’s final three months.

That compares with $650 Miller raised in the third quarter. Smith and Schiffer, meanwhile, didn’t have fundraising reports for the third quarter.

Schiffer argues that Renacci’s designation as the lead candidate is a sign “the fix is in.”  Schiffer said grassroots Republicans won’t tolerate such an undemocratic move by party leaders.

“This isn’t the year for that,” Schiffer said.

Jeff Matthews, Stark County’s Republican Party chairman, said he and chairmen from other counties met last summer with declared candidates — Schiffer and Smith weren’t among them — to assess each of them. Party chairmen determined Renacci was the most qualified and best prepared to challenge Boccieri.

It wasn’t an endorsement, but the assessment has been borne out by the RNCC’s support for Renacci, Matthews said. “They certainly believe he’s qualified and able to raise the money he needs.”

WHERE THEY STAND

When it comes to issues, the four Republicans don’t stand very far apart. All espouse conservative ideals of small government, lower taxes and helping business grow to create jobs. They also contend that Boccieri fails to represent the district because he marches to the beat of the Democratic Party’s leadership.

Renacci said he entered the race after watching Democrats launch a spending spree when President Barack Obama took office. “Who’s going to pay this debt?” Renacci asked.

Miller contends government spending and the growing debt has hurt job creation. Business owners fear their taxes will be raised in order to cover the debt, so they are waiting before hiring new workers.

Schiffer is upset with the direction Obama and Democrats are taking the nation.

“I plan to go to capital hill and fight the liberals and socialists who are trying to destroy our economy,” he said.

Smith questions moves by the Democratic leadership, but he also is disappointed with the attitudes of some Republicans. The party has become negative and reactionary.

“I want the Republican Party to become a positive force for the good of the country,” he said.

BACKGROUND

All four Republican candidates cite experience as a reason they should be elected.

This is the third bid for congress by Miller, who turns 33 this week. He served two terms as an Ashland County commissioner, but lost the seat when he opted to run for the House in 2008. Since last January he has worked for the Salvation Army in Ashland as the agency’s business administrator.

“I’m out among people who are struggling every day,” Miller said.

Schiffer, 51, contends he’s the most experienced candidate, having worked in Washington as an outsider since the 1980s. He has been active in pro-life and conservative movements, lobbying elected officials.

Smith, 72, is a certified public accountant who has worked as a hospital controller and taught accounting. He’s retired, but he helps with his wife’s business. He said he’s been involved in Republican politics since 1952.

Renacci is a businessman who came to Wadsworth for a job after he graduated Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He also is a certified public account. He developed a nursing home management business during the 1980s and sold that in 2000. He still manages an accounting firm and has investments in a Wadsworth car dealership and a Stark County nursing home. Renacci jumped into politics in 2000, first as a Wadsworth councilman and then as mayor.

“I’m the only candidate in the race who can say I have 27 years experience in creating jobs,” Renacci said.

WHERE THEY SIT AT THE TEA PARTY?

In 2009, opposition to changes proposed by President Barack Obama and the Democratic-led congress spurred a grassroots opposition called the Tea Party movement. It spawned the 9-12 Project and the Tea Party Patriots.

Republican candidates for the 16th Congressional District were asked about the Tea Party movement. Here are their comments.

Matt Miller: Has attended events and spoken to Tea Party groups. A Tea Party organizer from the Ashland area is helping on his campaign. “They can see I’m an ordinary guy who understands what the U.S. Constitution says.”

Jim Renacci: Believes Congress is in desperate need of strong advocates for fiscal responsibility, and that the Tea Party movement has played an important role in helping advance the call for the restoration of those policies.

Paul Schiffer: Has participated with the Stark 912 Patriots in local and national Tea Party events. “I am the Tea Party candidate for this area.”

H. Doyle Smith: A member the Stark 912 Patriots. He likes that the movement is getting more people active in government. “If all they’re doing is to have a rebellion against taxes … we need fire men, not just opposition to the taxes that pay them.

 
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