Tristan Rader Files Paperwork For Campaign For U.S. Congress

LAKEWOOD, OH — Lakewood City Councilperson Tristan Rader filed paperwork Wednesday to become a candidate for U.S. Congress.

Rader, 35, has been part of Lakewood City Council for five years and works for Solar United Neighbors during the day. If elected, he vowed to bring accountability, transparency, and a commitment to making life in Ohio affordable and welcoming for all.

“In my day job, we help people to become more independent from big corporate utilities, using solar power that they own,” Rader said in a statement. “That’s the kind of public service we need from elected leaders also— taking on the special interests so that working people have more power.”

Redistrict Impact

While Ohio's Congressional districts remain murky due to legal challenges accusing mapmakers of gerrymandering, Rader is currently filed to run in Ohio's 9th District, the district currently represented by Rep. Marcy Kaptur. However, it is possible Rader's home in Lakewood will no longer be in the 9th district when redistricting is settled.

Rader is originally from Lorain County and remains connected to the region. The possibility of a new district, which includes both Lakewood and parts of Lorain, was one of the incentives motivating Rader's congressional bid.

“We simply don’t know where the district lines will end up, but the filing deadline hasn’t moved. Our west side communities have been split into other districts for years, and someone needs to file here in the event we get the better districts which voters demanded,” he said. “If one of the proposals bringing us together with Lorain County is chosen, all the better. I would love to work for the neighbors I grew up around, just as much as for Lakewood and the west side.”

Should his home wind up in another district, Rader said he would file to switch which district he is running to represent. He also vowed not to run against Nina Turner, who he called a friend of many years.