When Representative Emilia Sykes arrived at the regional airport in Akron on a recent Thursday morning to meet with dozens of local elected officials, she was the only Black person in the room. It wouldn’t be long before two others took seats in the audience, but it soon became clear that they were both related to her. Ms. Sykes briefly interrupted her remarks to welcome her parents: Vernon Sykes, a state senator, and Barbara Sykes, who sits on the Akron School Board. It is the kind of room that Ms. Sykes, 38, a first-term Democrat, is familiar with as one of only about a dozen Black members of Congress representing a majority-white district. challenger, Kevin Coughlin, who is white, is a former state lawmaker who is well known in Akron politics.

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Persons: Emilia Sykes, Sykes, Vernon Sykes, Barbara Sykes, Kevin Coughlin Organizations: Akron School Board, Democratic, Republicans Locations: Akron