A retired businessman narrowly survived a challenged by a Cummins Inc. engineer to win a third term on the Columbus City Council.
Republican Frank Miller, 66, who served as council president in 2017 and 2018, received 51.1% of the votes in the District 4 race Tuesday. But that was only 40 more votes (929-889) than the total for Democrat challenger Michael Schoumacher (48.9%).
“Michael has worked hard,” Miller said in regard to his opponent. “I just feel that folks either like what I’ve done on the council, or they don’t.”
Now that he’s been re-elected, Miller said there are several ongoing projects, as well as new initiatives, that he will be able to help oversee during his third term on the council.
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During his campaign, Schoumacher knocked on more than 4,000 doors, attended nearly every city council meeting for almost a year and made several evening telephone calls since April seeking voter support, he said.
The Democrat also raised more money than his opponent. Campaign finance reports showed Schoumacher receiving $6,701 from several contributors from mid-April through mid-October. In contrast, Miller reported receiving less than $100 in donations from April 13 through Oct. 11, and did not spend any money during that time.
Despite his impressive showing in his first political outing, the 31-year-old Schoumacher said he doesn’t know if he’ll run again for political office again.
“I feel I’ve worked as hard as I can work at this thing, and I don’t know what I could do differently,” the Democrat said. “But what I really want to do is just get involved in the direction of our city.”
Schoumacher said he intends to talk with friends involved in city government to inquire about what other positions might be available that match his particular skills set.
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Columbus City Council District 4
Frank Miller (R);929
Michael Schoumacher (D);889
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