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Aument, Lancaster County's clerk of courts, also has won support from True, who has said that "he has what it takes to go to Harrisburg" but has stopped just short of an official endorsement.
The 41st Legislative District district is heavily Republican, and no Democrat has yet to enter the race.
Former county GOP Chairman David M. Dumeyer, in a move that will likely surprise some in the party, announced Thursday morning that he will not run for seat. The West Hempfield Township supervisor, a retired senior state House staffer with deep political connections, was widely believed to have a strong interest in the position.
Dumeyer, 62, of Landisville, said he decided against running because he is busy enjoying many other things in his life — attending his grandchildren's sporting events and extracurricular activities, teaching at Harrisburg Area Community College, working to find a new minister for his church, running a consulting business and serving as a municipal official.
"These are all very important things in my life, and I'd have to give up some, if not all, of them to run a campaign," Dumeyer said. "And to me, that didn't seem to make a whole lot of sense."
In separate interviews, Michael F. Pickard, a businessman and Lancaster Township GOP chairman, and Doug Brubaker, an East Hempfield Township supervisor, said they, too, had decided against running.
They also said they believed Aument is a strong candidate for the seat and that they are likely to support him.
"I've got a lot of things going on, between family and running my business," Pickard, 46, said. "I'm very involved in the township and the party as well. I've got a lot of irons in the fire, and I'm not interested in giving any of it up."
Said Brubaker: "The time just isn't right for me. I'm committed to a family business."
Brubaker, 48, works for Brubaker Inc., a service and contracting firm in Rohrerstown.
"I've come to the conclusion that I'm going to stay on the sidelines and watch," he said.
Their decisions not to seek the seat leave Aument as the sole applicant for the Republican Committee of Lancaster County's endorsement, although there's more than a week and a half remaining before the deadline.
Candidates who intend to seek endorsement from the GOP have until Jan. 20 to notify the committee in writing of their campaigns.
The 17 area committees will begin conducting straw polls on Jan. 21. The committees do the informal, nonbinding polls over the course of several weeks to test the strength of the candidates prior to the endorsement convention.
The GOP will hold its endorsement convention on Feb. 16.
Brubaker, who met with Aument, said, "I think he is somebody I could consider — and it's still early yet — supporting. I think there's a lot of possibilities there with him."
Said Pickard: "I concur with Katie True. Ryan has what it takes to do the job, to go to Harrisburg. I think he's an excellent candidate, and at this point in time I would have no problem getting behind him."
East Hempfield Township Supervisor Brett Miller, another potential candidate, could not be reached for comment, but had not filed paperwork with the party as of Thursday.
True, 68, announced in November that she would retire at the end of her fourth term in the 41st district, saying she has achieved most of her legislative goals in recent years and now wants to focus on personal ones. She had served four previous terms in the 37th district.
Aument, 32, of Farmington Place, Landisville, is in his first term as county clerk of courts, the office that manages criminal records. He previously served as chief of staff for state Rep. Bryan Cutler, a Republican from Peach Bottom.
