Third candidate enters District 67 state representative race

Another candidate has entered the race to fill the Ohio House of Representatives' new District 67 seat, Loudonville Village Council President Matt Young. The 31-year-old Republican was first elected to council in 2019 after a previous appointment to the village board of zoning appeals. District 67 territory will most likely be made up of the city of Brunswick, Medina County's western edge, and Ashland County. Much of that land has been part of Ohio's District 70 in recent years and represented by fellow Republican and Loudonville resident Darrell Kick. Young said Kick encouraged him to enter the District 67 fray. "I was approached last summer when the redistricting process was taking place and they had the maps somewhat laid out," Young said Monday. "Our current representative, Darrell Kick, told me there's going to be an open seat and they're moving me out. He said I should think about running for it. That's when I really got my wheels turning. I'd had no real anticipation of running for anything with the expectation of (Kick) being redistricted. Things got rolling on my end and we officially announced that I'm running last week." Kick said he intends to run next year to represent the new Ohio District 98, which is slated to be made up of all of Knox County as well as parts of Holmes and Morrow counties. He will vacate his District 70 seat at the end of 2022 under the new district map, which is the subject of ongoing court litigation. "Matt's been very involved in Loudonville area politics for a lot of years and has shown a lot of interest in the party," Kick said. "When I saw the new maps I ran into him a little while later to tell him. He's told me ever since that I was the one who got him going on this. It's true he really wasn't expecting to do this yet. Matt's really going for it now and I'm happy for him. I'll miss serving in Medina County but I'll be around for another year and I look forward to running in a new area." Two other Republicans, Brunswick mayor Ron Falconi and 17-year-old Brunswick High School student Dakota Sawyer, who will be 18 by next May's primary election, have declared intention to run for the District 67 seat. Young said he's filed necessary campaign paperwork with the Ohio Secretary of State's Office and that he plans to do the same with the Medina County Board of Elections in the near future. With Medina County being the most populated out of those slated for District 67 inclusion, its board of elections will handle all local filings. "Everything has to be filed in Medina County by February and we'll be taking care of that very soon," Young said. "We're getting our petitions together right now and we hope to have (local filing) done here in the next couple of weeks. I was kind of waiting to see how the new district map turns out and everyone seems to be just jumping in the race and not paying attention to the litigation. From what I've been told by my advisers and others on my team, they said to just go ahead and (file in Medina County). I've been kind of vaguely campaigning before the official announcement. My sources in Columbus tell me that even if the maps get thrown out and redone, this (District 67) area will probably stay the same." Ohio's primary election deciding a Republican candidate for District 67 and District 98 will take place May 3. Staunch support of popular conservative stances on the Second Amendment and tax reform as well as opposition to vaccine mandates are expressed on Young's campaign website. "This is a majority conservative area and I want to go to Columbus to stand for those conservative values and represent the people right here in Medina County and Ashland County," he said. "That means going to bat for funding or infrastructure that our communities need or training that our first responders need. As someone with a great deal of private sector experience, working for Burgess Ambulance Sales and getting to deal closely with our fire and EMS responders, I can take that experience and use it in the Legislature in a way that benefits our residents and holds up conservative values." Contact reporter Jonathan Delozier at (330) 721-4050 or jdelozier@medina-gazette.com.