Friday, June 5, 2015

African-American attorney Eddie Sipplen to run as Republican candidate for Akron mayor

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(Beacon Journal)
Suddenly, being a Republican running for Akron mayor doesn’t seem like such a long shot.
With the Democratic Party immersed in a scandal and the new mayor suddenly dropping out of the race Friday, the county GOP is feeling good about its candidate and the party’s chances to gain a foothold into the city administration that it has been denied for more than three decades.
Eddie Sipplen, an outspoken African-American defense attorney, is the Republican Party’s candidate to challenge whoever emerges as the troubled Democratic Party’s mayoral contender. Even before the shocking development Friday that Interim Mayor Garry Moneypenny won’t seek a full term this year amid news he inappropriately touched a female city employee, Sipplen was confident in his chances.