After being in print and on the air for almost 50 years, Riverfront Times founder Ray Hartmann will now be on the ballot.
Hartmann announced Thursday that he will run in the Democratic primary for the 2nd Congressional District seat, now held by U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Town and Country.
“I know this gets said every four years, but this election is pivotal for democracy,” said Hartmann, 71.
Hartmann, a Richmond Heights resident who is moving to St. Charles County, is married with two children.
His first big splash in the St. Louis area came with his founding the Riverfront Times in 1977.
After leading the alternative weekly newspaper for over two decades, Hartmann sold it in 1998. He acquired St. Louis magazine in 2002 and managed it until its sale in 2018.
People are also reading…
For a brief time following the magazine’s sale, he returned to the RFT as an opinion columnist. He has since written for the news website Raw Story and online platform Substack.
Hartmann also was one of the original panelists on “Donnybrook,” a public-affairs debate show on KETC (Channel 9) that made its debut in 1987.
On Thursday night’s show, Hartmann announced that he would be leaving the panel.
“Obviously, if I’m running for Congress, I have to retire from journalism,” he said.
Along with the print and television exposure, Hartmann has been heard regularly on radio over the years: WGNU (920 AM) in the 1980s; KMOX…
This article was originally published by a www.stltoday.com . Read the Original article here. .