Bridgeport — Congressman Charlie Wilson filed his petitions for candidacy for the 6th Congressional District.

Wilson, first elected to the seat in 2006, is running for his third term. After filing his petitions, Congressman Wilson released the following statement:

“It has been one of the great honors of my life to represent the people of the 6th District. I was born in this area, raised my family here, and ran a successful local business here for over 40 years,” Wilson said.

“I take the values and lessons that I’ve learned here to Washington with me each week. Though our country is facing difficult times, I know that applying Ohioans’ common sense approach to our national problems will result in real progress and real solutions.”

Wilson said the 6th District faces many challenges, but among the largest is a lack of jobs.

“We need to get people back to work, and I will continue to do my part to make that happen. I pledge to keep working with our small businesses to expand their opportunities and allow for job creation. I will work with our universities and community colleges to expand workforce development opportunities.”

On a national level, Wilson said our country faces a number of challenges as well.

“I will continue to work for specific national policies that I believe will help our area, our people, and our industries, but I also want to focus on our country’s long-term financial security. “

The 6th District covers 12 counties in Southeastern Ohio running along the Ohio River: Mahoning, Columbiana, Jefferson, Belmont, Monroe, Noble, Washington, Athens, Meigs, Gallia, Lawrence and Scioto.