Columbus City Council District 3 has a contested primary

There will be at least one contested primary in Columbus this May. Russ Poling filed paperwork Monday morning to seek the Republican Party nomination for the City Council, District 3.

Poling, a quality manager at Cummins, is currently serving in his second term on the Columbus City Plan Commission. He previously served on the Columbus Redevelopment Commission. He also volunteers as a Veteran Mentor for the Bartholomew County Veterans Treatment Court.

Poling served on active duty in the United States Air Force for 20 years. He was honorably discharged with the rank of Master Sergeant.

Poling is running against fellow Republican David Bush, who was selected by party officials to complete the term of Frank Jerome. Jerome resigned at the end of 2018 after announcing plans to move out of the district. Poling, Bush and former State Rep. Jon Padfield were the three candidates party officials considered for Jerome’s seat.

Poling and Bush aren’t alone in their bid for the seat. Nancy Hoover, a Democrat, filed Monday afternoon to run for the seat. She is currently unopposed in the Democratic primary. So far, only three Democrats have filed to run for city office. Along with Hoover, there is Grace Kestler running for City Council At-Large and incumbent Democrat Elaine Wagner is running for reelection to the District 2 council seat.

Candidates can file at the Voter Registration Office inside the Bartholomew County Courthouse. The deadline to file is noon on Friday.