Miami University of Ohio professor Tom Poetter announced this week that he will challenge Speaker John A. Boehner in Ohio’s 8th District, marking the first Democrat to try to oust the top House Republican this cycle.

Poetter, an education professor at Miami University, has also directed the university’s Partnership Office, which helps the university reach out to the surrounding community.

But Poetter faces an uphill battle to oust Boehner in the 8th District, which voted for GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney with 62 percent in 2012. Boehner ran unopposed last cycle, but in 2010, he defeated his Democratic opponent by a 36-point margin.

Ohio’s 8th District is rated a Safe Republican contest by Rothenberg Political Report/Roll Call.