Republican county chairs in Ohio's 14th Congressional District have selected Geauga County ProsecutorDavid Joyce to be the GOP's general election nominee. The party was forced to fill the empty slot on the ballot left by Rep. Steven LaTourette, who decided last month that he would retire and not seek reelection.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that Joyce's nomination was unanimous and that he has a close relationship with LaTourette, who was himself a county prosecutor before he joined the House of Representatives. Joyce now becomes a general election favorite without ever having a ballot cast for him for Congress. Though the district doesn't lean very Republican at the presidential level, the Democratic nominee -- multiple-cycle LaTourette opponent Dale Blanchard -- is unviable, so much so that local Democratic leaders tried to push him out when LaTourette retired and it became clear the seat might become a pickup opportunity.
