BOARDMAN — State Rep. Don Manning, who narrowly won the 59th District Ohio House race last year, will run in 2020 for re-election.

Which Democrat will run against the New Middletown Republican remains to be seen though John Boccieri — a former state representative, state senator and congressman — said he’d consider a challenge if no one else steps up.

“We’ve been able to do some good things, but the work isn’t done,” Manning said. “I feel I’ve accomplished a lot in the first term. It helps being a member of the majority party. It gets things accomplished.”

Dec. 18 is the filing deadline for the March 17, 2020, primary.

Manning won the 2018 general election for the House district — which includes about half of Mahoning County’s population — by 0.7 of a percent, 375 votes, beating Democrat Eric C. Ungaro, a Poland Township trustee.

Ungaro, who is seeking re-election next month to the trustee position, said he is focused on winning that race and his family, and not the state House seat.

Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairwoman Joyce Kale-Pesta said she is working to find an opponent for Manning.

Boccieri of Poland said state Democratic leaders have asked him to be a candidate for the position. In 2016, Boccieri — who was appointed to the seat Sept. 29, 2015 — beat Manning by 16.88 percentage points, 10,593 votes. Instead of seeking re-election last year, Boccieri unsuccessfully ran for the state Senate’s 33rd District seat, losing to Republican Michael Rulli of Salem.

Manning “is extremely vulnerable and has taken troubling positions,” Boccieri said. “I’d like to serve again someday. But I don’t know if this is the right position for me or not. I’d like to see someone step up and run. If we don’t have a candidate to run, I’d consider that. I’ve already beaten him.”

Before the 2015 appointment, Boccieri served three terms in the Ohio House, was elected to the state Senate in 2006 and a congressional seat two years later. He lost re-election to Congress in 2010.

Manning said: “I hope what I’ve been able to accomplish is enough to convince voters to re-elect me. I’m not a career politician so if it’s a two-year term, I could walk away and say, ‘I did good things.'”

A bill Manning sponsored became law, and another was included in the state budget.

The bill Manning sponsored that became law prohibits school districts from reducing the level of busing provided during an academic year — called the “West Branch Rule” as it was in direct response to that school district eliminating busing after voters rejected a tax proposal. The bill included in the budget was ResultsOhio, which provides state reimbursement for successful “out-of-the-box” initiatives such as drug addiction, infant mortality, long-term care and water quality.

The House also passed a bill — sponsored by Manning and Thomas E. West, D-Canton — to create a commission to develop evidence- and outcome-based solutions to improve the mental health of children and young adults. It hasn’t been passed in the state Senate.

Boccieri called Manning “a pathetic leader for our community in Columbus,” criticizing him for voting to raise the gas tax — which was overwhelmingly supported by the Ohio House — “without appreciable money coming back to the Valley,” as well as voting to bail out two bankrupt FirstEnergy Solutions nuclear power plants “without protecting our local natural gas plant (in Lordstown), losing a $1 billion investment.” Manning said he voted for the bill to replace green-energy subsidies with a small fee to stabilize the nuclear plants that employ thousands and make up 80 percent of the state’s zero-carbon electricity.

The district includes all of Beaver, Beloit, Berlin, Boardman, Canfield, Craig Beach, Ellsworth, Goshen, Green, Jackson, Milton, New Middletown, Poland, Sebring, Smith, Springfield, Washingtonville and a small section of Austintown.

dskolnick@tribtoday.com