Cohn is running for the District 15 seat covering portions of HIllsborough, Lake and Polk counties

Alan Cohn, a former news anchor with Sarasota television station ABC 7, is running for Congress in Florida's District 15.

Cohn hopes to unseat U.S. Rep. Ross Spano, a Republican who has been under investigation for campaign finance issues.

Cohn ran as a Democrat from the same seat in 2014, losing to former U.S. Rep. Dennis Ross. He then went to work for ABC 7, where he anchored the 7 p.m. news broadcast and served as managing editor for the show. Cohn left the station recently. He had a long career in journalism that included winning a prestigious George Foster Peabody Award for an investigation into defective parts in military helicopters.

"I'm running for Congress to hold the powerful accountable," Cohn said Monday in a press release that also touched on lowering health care costs, helping veterans and helping those who are struggling economically.

District 15 covers portions of Hillsborough, Polk and Lake counties and includes the communities of Brandon and Lakeland. It has 171,472 Republicans, 168,642 Democrats and 135,476 no party affiliation voters.

Democratic state Rep. Adam Hattersley also is running for the District 15 seat.