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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2007 > October > 25 > Entry
Don Mottley packs his bags
Former State Rep. Don Mottley won’t challenge Kettering Councilwoman Peggy Lehner in a Republican primary race for the 37th Ohio House seat.
In fact, he’s leaving Montgomery County, after living here for a half-century.
But Mottley is not ruling out running for office - perhaps even the Congressional seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-Ohio - from his new home in Columbus.
“I wish Don the very best in whatever he chooses to do in Columbus,” said Lehner, who was endorsed in July by the Montgomery County Republican Party central committee. “He was a good stage legislator and he would’ve been a formidable foe in the primary.”
Mottley on Thursday confirmed that he is now a registered voter in Franklin County. He’s engaged to be married in January to Marianne White of Columbus. She’s a former senate staffer now working for the Ohio Department of Education. She and Mottley have dated for 7 years, with him commuting from West Carrollton to his law offices in Columbus and Cincinnati.
Maintaining a residence in one city makes more sense, said Mottley, but he admits, “My first choice was always to run for re-election to my old House seat in Montgomery County.”
Mottley is not sure if a State House seat in his new district is an option for him because the Franklin County Republican Party has already endorsed Bill Schuck for the 22nd Ohio House District. But Mottley said no one is endorsed for Pryce’s 15th Congressional District seat.
“No one in authority has asked me to consider that,” Mottley said. “I’m mindful that Republicans don’t have a candidate yet for that seat.”
Following a “no-primary battles” edict from the state party, the Montgomery County Republican Party central committee in July endorsed for local House seats slated to open up due to term limits. They picked Lehner over Mottley and Miami Twp. Trustee Deborah Preston for the seat now held by House Speaker Jon Husted, R-Kettering.
Mottley had questioned the endorsement because he believed three people who voted for Lehner were ineligible based on their place of residence. However, Party Chairman Greg Gantt said there was no party mechanism for Mottley to pursue a challenge of the endorsment and Mottley decided against filing residency challenges with the Montgomery County Board of Elections.
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