OH 18: Ethics Issue Makes Ney’s Re-Election Bid a Tossup

A close past association with now-convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff has put long-popular Republican Rep. Bob Ney at risk as he seeks a seventh term in Ohio’s 18th District.

The Democrats’ intent to aim squarely at Ney’s Achilles’ heel was inherent in a TV ad released Monday by Chillicothe Mayor Joe Sulzer — which says “a culture of corruption in Washington” has rendered the government incapable of curbing rising gas prices and the outsourcing of Americans’ jobs to other countries, issues troubling many voters in the mainly working-class 18th.

With an ongoing continuing federal investigation into Abramoff’s Capitol Hill contacts clouding Ney’s re-election prospects, CQPolitics.com has moved the 18th District race into its No Clear Favorite, or tossup, category, from Leans Republican.

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