Hamilton County District Attorney Neal Pinkston on Wednesday officially announced his re-election bid in what has already proven to be a fiery race.
Pinkston, a Republican who has served as district attorney since 2014, will run for a second term against fellow Republican Coty Wamp, general counsel for the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office. The two already clashed at a January debate before Pinkston officially announced.
"I did not take your faith in me lightly when you allowed me to be your district attorney in 2014," Pinkston said in a statement. "I will continue to work hard and build on these accomplishments for the benefit of Hamilton County throughout my next term."
(READ MORE: District Attorney Pinkston cites work on cold cases as key factor in re-election bid)
In a Wednesday campaign news release, Pinkston touted his work to create a cold case unit within the office that has solved more than 20 homicides that previously went unresolved after five or more years.
He also cited his work to combat gun violence and gangs through the multi-agency TARGET unit and the review of more than 30 years of unprocessed homicide evidence to ensure convictions were fair and just.
(READ MORE: Hamilton County DA opponents Pinkston, Wamp clash at first event together)
In the past couple of months, Pinkston has labeled himself as a "prosecutor, not a politician," with an advantage in the race because of his experience within the department.
The Republican first joined the office as a prosecutor in 2003 before being promoted to executive assistant district attorney in 2007.
(READ MORE: Wamp receives police union endorsements as race heats up)
As of the end of 2021, Pinkston raised $68,000 and had $71,032 cash on hand, according to the Hamilton County Election Commission.
Wamp raised $130,522 and had $112,589 cash on hand.
The primary election will take place May 3, with Pinkston and Wamp being the only Republicans on the ballot.
Democrat John Allen Brooks is also running, but he is unopposed in the primary.
The voter registration deadline for the primary election is April 4. Early voting will take place between April 13 and April 28, and the deadline to request an absentee ballot is April 26. The winners from the party primaries will meet in the general election in August.
Contact Logan Hullinger at lhullinger@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6416. Follow him on Twitter @LoganHullinger.