FORT WAYNE -- A Fort Wayne novelist and freelance writer has filed to run for Congress in Indiana's 3rd District.

David Sowards on Thursday became the sixth person to file a declaration of candidacy for the May 8 Democratic primary election. But the field lost a candidate Friday when Warsaw attorney David Kolbe announced he would not seek the Democratic nomination after all.

As of Thursday, Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-3rd, was the only person to file for the Republican primary election. The filing deadline was at noon today.

Sowards is a novelist and freelance writer and a former employee of the General Motors pickup assembly plant in Allen County. He said he also has worked for the Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation Department and Historic Fort Wayne. He is a graduate of Indiana University, where he majored in political science.

The 3rd District covers northeast Indiana and will include Huntington, Wells and Adams counties for this year's primary and general elections, thanks to redistricting last year by the state legislature.