From The Metro Desk Of Cleveland Urban News.Com and The Kathy Wray Coleman Online News Blog.Com, Ohio's No 1 and No 2 online Black newspapers

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CLEVELAND, Ohio- Democratic Cleveland Mayoral Candidate Ken Lanic (pictured) will host an appreciation dinner at 5 pm this evening at Embassy Suites in Independence on Rockside Woods Blvd. for those community activists and others that support his candidacy and that helped him collect petition signatures to get on the ballot. For more information contact the Lanci for Cleveland Mayor Campaign east side coordinatorat 216-501-7368.

"We filed petitions last week, the campaign is gaining momentum, and the event this evening is to show appreciation for campaign supporters, including people that helped collect petition signatures" said Vernon Bryant, Lanci's east side campaign coordinator.

The millionaire businessman who grew up in a housing project on Cleveland's majority Black east side filed petitions to run for mayor last week with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections.

County board of elections officials said that the petitions are being verified for potential verification and that candidates for Cleveland mayor need 3,000 signatures to make the ballot this year. Cleveland City Council candidates need 200 verified signatures and the petitions filing deadline for mayor and city council is June 27.

Lanci, who ran unsuccessfully for Cuyahoga County executive in 2010, then as an Independent, hopes to unseat two term mayor Frank Jackson,  a Democrat who is seeking reelection this year.

The nonpartisan runoffs elections for Cleveland mayor and Cleveland City Council are September 10 with a general election on November 5.

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