Former Erie County Democratic Party Chairman Jim Wertz announced that he will be running for State Senate in the 49th District.

"I look forward to being able to communicate my message in every corner of Erie County, we have done a great job the last six years getting out into every community and getting into the farthest reaches of Erie County and I think we saw that pay off in 2023 with wins in boroughs and townships that we had not seen for a long time," Wertz said.

The seat he is running for is currently held by Republican incumbent Dan Laughlin who just last year filed a defamation lawsuit against the Erie Reader over an article written by Wertz.

The lawsuit does not worry Wertz who believes that when all the facts are laid out, the public will side with him.

"When the people of Erie find out what that lawsuit was all about and find out why I was silenced with a lawsuit then they will understand what this campaign is all about and what our values really are," Wertz said.

In response to Wertz' announcement, Erie County Republican Chairman Tom Eddy thinks change in this case is not needed.

"He has been there since 2016 and has done a lot for the district, one of the great things about this is he is running for a third term and he is now in the senior leadership so when you look at how the Senate or the House runs if you are in a leadership position that provides you with a opportunity to bring a lot of good things back to your community," Eddy said.

Having spent years as the Democratic Party Chairman, Wertz is now looking for support from constituents on both sides of the aisle.

"This is not a partisan fight, this is about a fight for Erie and I look forward to taking that to the people of Erie County," Wertz said.