Betsy Rader Will Face David Joyce For Representative Seat

SOLON, OH — Betsy Rader officially became the Democratic Party's nominee to become U.S. Representative for Ohio's 14th District, a position currently held by Republican David Joyce. The two will square off in the general election in a race that could be hotly contested.

“I want to thank all of the people who voted in today’s primary election--I’m honored to be the Democratic nominee in Ohio’s 14th District. I never imagined that I would run for Congress, but it has been an incredible opportunity to meet folks from every corner of our district and hear their concerns," Rader said in a statement sent out Tuesday night.

While she ran unopposed for the nomination, Rader still managed to secure the most votes of any Democratic challenger in Ohio, with 7,332 votes, according to the Cuyahoga County Board of Election's unverified results.

Rader managed to raise more money than Joyce in the first quarter of 2018, a fact her campaign trumpeted in April. But unseating Joyce is a tall task. He won about 63 percent of the vote in 2016 and has more money in the bank to draw upon than Rader.

Joyce was first elected in 2012 to become 14th District's Representative to Congress.

Rader will lean on a groundswell of national political upheaval, focused primarily on guns and immigration. In recent months, Mentor High School students marched to Joyce's office in an effort to engage the congressman in a discussion on gun control. Joyce did not speak with the students.

The incumbent was also the target of an immigration demonstration in Chagrin Falls in mid-April. DACA recipients and their supporters went to Triangle Park and put on a theatrical protest.

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