OH-05: House Pulls Down Paul Gillmor's Website

COLUMBUS (TDB) -- U.S. Rep. Paul Gillmor passed away a day ago and his official House Website is now gone, too. The quick action by the House Clerk's office makes it seem like he didn't exist.

The House district Republican Gillmor represented in Northwest Ohio is the second largest in the state, and covered an area larger than Connecticut. Political insiders say the early buzz is that former Ohio Attorney General and Auditor Betty Montgomery, who is from Wood County (Bowling Green) in the district, will be urged to run as Gillmor's replacement. Meanwhile, Gov. Ted Strickland has to call a special election to fill the seat and reportedly plans to schedule the vote for Tuesday, November 6, when local and county elections are already scheduled to be conducted in many communities across the state.

Strickland is said to believe that a November 6 special election would save millions of dollars because polls will have to be open and staffed for Election Day. Out of respect to his former House colleague (Strickland represented the state's biggest congressional district along the Ohio River in Appalachian Ohio), the governor is not expected to make a public announcement of his decision until after Gillmor's funeral and memorial services are completed.