overturned on appeal. Later that month, Kucinich dropped out of the race and did not endorse any other candidate. He endorsed Barack Obama after Obama won the nomination. On August 27, 2008, he delivered a speech at the Democratic National Convention. Congressional campaigns Until 2012, Kucinich was reelected to Congress by big margins in his strongly Democratic-leaning districts. 2006 Kucinich defeated a Democratic primary challenger by a wide margin and defeated Republican Mike Dovilla in the general election with 66% of the vote. 2008 His opponents included Cleveland City Councilman Joe Cimperman and North Olmsted Mayor Thomas O'Grady. In February 2008, Kucinich raised around $50,000 compared to Cimperman's $228,000, but through a YouTube fund-raising campaign he managed to raise $700,000, surpassing Cimperman's $487,000. Cimperman, who was endorsed by the mayor of Cleveland and The Plain Dealer, criticized Kucinich for focusing too much on campaigning for president and not on the district. Kucinich accused Cimperman of representing corporate and real estate interests. Cimperman described Kucinich as an absentee congressman who failed to pass any major legislative initiatives in his 12-year House career. In an interview, Cimperman said he was tired of Kucinich and Cleveland being joke fodder for late-night talk-show hosts, saying: "It's time for him to go home." A Cimperman campaign ad stated that Kucinich had missed over 300 votes, but the actual number was 139. It was also suggested that Kucinich's calls for universal health care and an immediate withdrawal from Iraq made him a thorn in the side of the Democrats' congressional leadership, as well as his refusal to pledge to support the eventual presidential nominee, which he later reconsidered. Kucinich took part in a debate with the other primary challengers. Barbara Ferris criticized him for not bringing as much money back to the district as other area legislators and authoring just one bill that passed during his 12 years in Congress. Kucinich responded: "It was a Republican Congress and there weren't many Democrats passing meaningful legislation during a Republican Congress." He won the primary with 68,156 votes out of 135,589 cast, beating Cimperman 52% to 33%. Kucinich defeated former State Representative Jim Trakas in the November 4 general election with 157,268 votes, 57.02% of those cast. Trakas received 107,918 votes (39.13%). 2010 Kucinich defeated Republican nominee Peter J. Corrigan and Libertarian nominee Jeff Goggins in the November 2 general election with 101,343 votes, 53.1% of those cast.