Emilia Sykes

Republican Carey Coleman, a former WNIR-FM radio talk show host, is challenging Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes to three debates ahead of the Nov. 3 election for Ohio's 13th Congressional District seat.

"Voters in this district are not interested in a candidate who governs through press releases and cable news hits," Coleman said in a prepared statement. "They want someone who will look them in the eye and answer the question. I have done that for 30 years. I will do it on a debate stage three times this fall. The question is whether the Congresswoman has the same confidence in her own record."

Cory Medina, Sykes' campaign manager, declined to say whether Sykes would consider participating.

Via email, Medina said, "Extremist Carey Coleman wants to change the subject from his support of an agenda in Washington that's raising our costs on everything from healthcare to gas to groceries, and while he tells Ohio's teachers to 'go to hell' Emilia Sykes will continue listening to her constituents just as she did in her 15 town halls and Congress in our community events last year."

In 2025, the 13th District was redrawn. The new map favors Democrats by a 3% to 4% margin, prompting Republican Kevin Coughlin to withdraw. He battled Sykes for the seat in 2024, coming within striking distance. Previously, it was classified as one of the few real tossup districts in the country, being split nearly 50/50 along party lines.

The district's new boundary includes all of Summit County, a swath of northwestern Stark County and the Kent area in western Portage County.

Coleman's challenge came on the heels of a May 6 press release from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee stating that rather than debate Sykes on the issues directly, "he has used his radio platform to personally attack her because he knows he can’t defend his extreme agenda."

His campaign pitched holding the debates in the districts three population centers with formats and moderators to be negotiated between the campaigns.

Fresh off his May 5 win in the five-way GOP primary race, Coleman called the criticism "laughable."

"For 25 years I sat behind a microphone and took live calls from the people of this district with no script, no staff to interrupt and no part committee to hide behind," Coleman said. "I have spent more hours answering hard questions from Northeast Ohio voters than Emilia Sykes has spent in this district all year. The idea that I am afraid to stand on a stage with her is, frankly, a punchline."

Contact reporter Derek Kreider at [email protected] or 330-541-9413.