Earning two-thirds of the vote during Tuesday’s Republican primary, incumbent Ryan Brand will turn his attention to Democrat Elaine Wagner, who he will face in November for the right to serve a second term as District 2 city councilman.
Brand, a 41-year-old business development manager, received 928 votes, easily defeating challenger Bob Sullivan who earned support from 472 voters, or nearly 34 percent.
Citing what he described as a “pretty politically charged atmosphere,” Brand said he felt there was a collective sigh of relief from the community to finally get to Tuesday’s primary.
He recalled that when Kristen Brown was elected mayor in 2011, she claimed it was a mandate for change.
“After three-and-a-half years, we now know what that change looks like,” Brand said. “Now that we’ve had a comparison, many think we might want to go back where we came from.”
Sullivan, 34, an instrumentation technical support specialist, previously ran for Bartholomew County Council District 2 in 2010 and city council at-large in 2011. He has been a member of the Columbus Board of Public Works and Safety since 2013.
“I’ll continue on the Board of Works,” Sullivan said. “I have no regrets about the campaign.”
Wagner, a 29-year-old marketing professional, was unopposed in the Democratic primary.
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Columbus City Council District 2
Republican
Ryan Brand;928
Robert (Bob) Sullivan;472
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