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Ballots set for November 7 election




LANCASTER/ NEWARK/ NEW LEXINGTON – Ballots are now set for the November 7 election.

Fairfield County

In Fairfield County, the Village of Baltimore will have to appoint two council members in January unless two candidates declare their intent to be a write-in candidate by the August 28 statewide deadline. Long-time incumbents Robert Hankison and Jim Hochradel are not on the ballot. Incumbents Council President Dwayne Mohler and Mike Hamilton are on the ballot. Council members Tony House and Chuck Keller have two years left on their terms.

Millersport will have a new council member in January unless Council President Pro Tem Dustin Bidwell files a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate by the August 28 deadline. Bidwell did not submit his petition by the August 9 deadline. Three incumbents – Charles Mesko, Donna Thogmartin and Linda Willison – and one newcomer – John Hitchcock are on the November 7 ballot with four council seats open.

Unless a write-in candidate emerges August 28, the Village of Thurston will have a new council member in January. Incumbents Heather Baker, Jimmy Dee Barber, Jr. and Russell Lowell Hite and newcomer Scott Whited are on the November 7 ballot with four council seats open.

Four candidates are seeking two trustee positions in Liberty Township. Incumbents Betsy Alt and Randy L. Kemmerer are being challenged by Don Keller and Adam Leith. Three candidates in Walnut Township are seeking two positions. Rick Cochran of Fairfield Beach is challenging incumbents Terry Horn and Doug Leith.

In the Liberty Union-Thurston School District, four candidates are seeking three positions on the board of education. Two are incumbents Caryl Elliot Caito and Shaun Hochradel.

Bill Moore and Dawn Sutton are the newcomers. Long time school board member John Hutton is not seeking reelection. The school district is asking voters for the second time to approve an additional 3.5 mill permanent improvements levy for five years. Voters rejected the new levy by a 2:1 margin last May. The new tax would raise approximately $648,000 a year which would initially be used to replace the track and upgrade the football stadium.

In the Walnut Township Local School District, three candidates are seeking two open positions. Board President Tom Cumbow is not seeking reelection. Incumbent Carol King is on the ballot with former board member Faye Whitaker and newcomer Amy C. Amspaugh.

The only county tax issue is a one mill renewal and one mill additional tax levy for 10 years for protective services for children and the elderly. Pleasant Township is seeking an additional two mill levy for fire protection and emergency medical services.

Rockside Winery and Vineyard on Ohio 37 in Pleasant Township just north of Lancaster has two local option issues on the ballot. The first seeks approval to sell spirituous liquor and the second seeks Sunday sales of wine and mixed beverages.

Licking County

In Licking County, the Village of Buckeye Lake will have two new council members in January unless any write-in candidates meet the August 28 declaration of intent deadline. Incumbent council members Tim Ryan and Peggy Wells are not seeking reelection. Incumbent council President Kitty Zwissler and newcomers William French and John Geiger are seeking three position. Two-term council member Peggy Wells is challenging one-term incumbent Mayor Clay Carroll. The Licking County Board of Elections rejected newcomer Kellie Lee Green’s petition for village council for failure to gather enough valid signatures. She was one of six filers countywide that failed to gather enough valid signatures. A total of 207 candidates filed petitions with 201 having their petition certified by the board of elections.

The Village of Buckeye Lake has two tax issues on the ballot. One is a 5 mill renewal for five years for fire and emergency medical services. The other is an additional five mill levy for five years for street maintenance, street paving, operational needs and street lights.

In Hebron, former Mayor Clifford Mason is one of six candidates seeking four seats on Village Council. Two years ago, Mason lost his bid for a sixth term as mayor by a handful of votes to former village income tax administrator and village administrator Mike McFarland. Council incumbents Jim Friend, Thomas Marietta and Arnelle Porter and newcomer Paige Seymour are seeking four council seats.

In the Village of Kirkersville, five candidates are seeking four open council positions. The candidates are Zachary Blackburn, Judith Casto, Brian Denton, Jessica Forsthoefel and Mark Paglione. There are no candidates for two full terms and one unexpired term on the Board of Public Affairs.

In Bowling Green Township, incumbents Benjamin Hupp and Daniel VanBuren are seeking reelection as trustees. Prospective trustee candidate Kevin Black was one of the six candidates countywide who failed to gather enough valid signatures. The township also has a one mill renewal levy for five years for fire protection and emergency medical services.

In Etna Township, three candidates are seeking two trustee positions. Incumbents John Carlisle and Randy Foor, and newcomer Steven Slyh are the candidates.

In Franklin Township, incumbents Jay Clark and Jeremy Saling are the only candidates for two open trustee positions. The township also has two renewal levies on the ballot. Both are for 2 mills for three years. One is for fire protection and emergency medical services and the other is for roads and bridges.

In Harrison Township, three candidates are seeking two trustee positions. The candidates are incumbents Eric Smith and Mark VanBuren and newcomer Brad Williams.

Incumbent trustees Dave Miller and John Holman are the only candidates for two open positions in Licking Township. A one mill renewal levy for five years for fire protection and emergency medical services is also on the ballot.

In Madison Township, six candidates are seeking two open trustee positions. The candidates are incumbent trustee Jody A. German and Patrick Chesterson, Mark Creech, Rick Houston, Stephanie McKee and Joyce Weber. Incumbent Karen Barger is not on the ballot.

Incumbent trustees Charles Prince and Randy Weekly are the only candidates for two open positions in Union Township. There is a local option issue in Precinct B to allow Mill Dam Corner Grill to sell of wine and mixed beverages and spirituous liquor on Sundays from 10 a.m. to midnight.

Seven candidates are seeking three open positions on the Lakewood Local School District Board of Education. Candidates are incumbents Tim Phillips and Judy White and newcomers Chelsea Francis, Tara Houdeshell, Jonathan Lynch, Doyle Pertuset and Bill Pollard. Incumbent Trisha Good did not seek reelection. The district is also seeking a 4.9 mill renewal emergency levy for five years.

Five candidates are seeking three positions on the Southwest Licking School District Board of Education. Candidates are incumbent Roger Zeune and James Helfrich, TJ Niedzielski, Catherine Spindler and John Y. Vincent. Incumbents Daniel Bell and Don Huber are not seeking reelection.

The only county tax issue is a one mill additional levy for 10 years for Childrens Services. The West Licking Joint Fire District which includes the Village of Kirkersville, Harrison Township and Etna Township is seeking a 1.5 mill renewal levy for five years for fire protection and emergency medical services.

Perry County

Seven candidates are seeking three open positions on the Northern Local School District Board of Education. The candidates are incumbents Patrick Hogan and Kimberly Severance, and Jeffrey Baird, Christopher King, Megan Miller, Charles Nichols and Aaron Wilson. Incumbent Dan Snider is not on the ballot.

Four candidates are seeking two open trustee positions in Hopewell Township. The candidates are incumbents David Ours and Steven Swinehar and Joseph Orr and Chad Wilkins. The township also has an additional 3.7 mill levy for fire protection and emergency medical services on the ballot.

Three candidates are seeking two open trustee positions in Thorn Township. The candidates are incumbents David Lyle and Rick Wilson and challenger John Shafer.

Only one candidate is on the ballot for the Village of Thornville Village Council. The candidate is incumbent Linda Savage. Incumbents

Dale Brussee, Debbie Moyer and Lynne Snider are not on the ballot but could become write-in candidates if they declare their intention by August 28.

The only county issue is a proposal to aggregate electricity in the unincorporated areas of the county.



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