Hoffman
Another candidate has emerged for Columbus City Council.
Paul Hoffman, a Democrat who ran for Bartholomew County Council in 2022, has filed to run for one of city council’s at-large seats, filling a ballot spot that was vacant during the primary election.
Due to city council’s decision to adopt “second class” status for the city of Columbus, residents will elect three at-large council members this year, instead of the current two.
The other candidates for city council at-large are:
Tom Dell (D, incumbent)
Grace Kestler (D, incumbent)
Josh Burnett (R)
Alex Engelbert (R)
Christopher W. Rutan (R)
Hoffman, 59, is the owner of PathBinder Publishing LLC, as well as an author and former journalist whose resume includes work with The Republic and its owner, AIM Media Indiana.
“I’ve been interested for quite a while in trying to do something good for my community,” he said. “As a journalist for 34 years, I was not able to do that in this kind of capacity. I ran for county council last year, learned a lot, kind of was interested in the city and just sort of told the leadership of the Democratic Party that, ‘If you want me to run, I’m happy to do so.’”
If elected, he plans to focus on issues such as affordable housing, homelessness and the city’s riverfront.
According to a press release, his other priorities include “responsible spending practices that spur smart economic development”, public safety, health care, retaining and and increasing “living-wage jobs”, and small business support.
Political parties have until July 3 at noon to select candidates to fill vacancies on the ballot. Remaining vacancies include the Democratic nomination for mayor, the Democratic nomination for city council District 4, and the Republican nomination for city council District 6.
The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 7.
