Akron Republican Josh Sines says he’ll concentrate on his businesses after losing the mayor’s race.
The wrestling announcer and restaurateur gathered with family and friends at the Windsor Pub in Chapel Hill on election night. He watched as Mayor Dan Horrigan, a Democrat, cruised to a second term with more than three quarters of the vote. Akron’s last Republican mayor was Roy Ray, elected in 1979. But Sines says he heard from many people on the campaign trail that the city needs a change.
“It is the same old-same old. People have been voting for the same people in Akron for 40 years. And they must like them?”
Despite losing, Sines says it was a “clean” campaign.
“We kind of talked about the issues and I think that’s what more people in politics need to do. Not just trash eachother and fight side-to-side, but all get together and just focus on the issues.”
Sines says he may concentrate more on his businesses for the time-being.
“In my life, I have a lot of other things going on. We’re businessmen. This was an opportunity that came up, and I thought I could help the people of Akron. And moving forward I’ll probably just have to re-evaluate what we’re doing between the people of Akron and what we’re doing with our businesses.”
Sines adds that he’s hoping to expand Bob’s Hamburg -- the popular restaurant he bought this year – by opening more locations in Northeast Ohio. He says in the coming term, he hopes Mayor Horrigan focuses on mental health initiatives and the quality of Akron’s roads.
