Fudge wins unopposed special election

Former Warrensville Heights Mayor and Congresswoman-elect Marcia Fudge has won the special election to finish out the term of U.S. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Cleveland) in Ohio's 11th Congressional District.

Fudge was unopposed in the special election on Tuesday, which Gov. Ted Strickland declared, saying that he was required to do so by law. The Democrat is a former chief of staff to Tubbs Jones, who passed away suddenly in Aug. 20 after suffering a brain aneurism at the age of 58. The election for the six-week post has been reported to have cost upwards of $5 million.

Unofficial results from the Ohio Secretary of State show that with 100 percent of precincts reporting, 8,694 voters turned out to vote in the special election out of 492,229 total registered voters in the district. The Secretary of State shows Fudge getting 8,450 votes.

Fudge won a full-term to represent the 11th District on Election Day, pulling in 85.12 percent, compared to 14.88 percent for engineer Thomas Pekarek (R-Cleveland). In that election, Fudge received 202,238 votes, compared to 35,357 for Pekarek.

Fudge was expected to take the oath of office Wednesday on the floor of the U.S. House.