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Republican to be removed from Nov. 4 ballot. His party has until Aug. 20 to name candidate
Published on Saturday, May 31, 2008
By Stephanie Warsmith
and Dennis Willard
Beacon Journal staff writers
Former state Rep. John Widowfield has officially withdrawn from his County Council race.
Widowfield, who resigned from the Ohio House of Representatives on Wednesday under the cloud of a football ticket scandal, filed a letter with the Summit County elections board asking that his name be removed from the Nov. 4 ballot.
''I respectfully withdraw as a candidate for Summit County Council,'' Widowfield said in the two-paragraph letter that he delivered to the board late Thursday afternoon. ''Thank you for your attention to this matter.''
The Summit County Republican Party will have until Aug. 20 to name a new candidate for County Council's District 3.
Just one 'R' on council
Widowfield, who was eligible to serve two more years in the House before hitting term limits, instead decided to run for County Council. He said he wanted to spend more time with his family. In the March primary, he defeated Louise Heydorn, the only GOP member of County Council.
Widowfield, 44, of Cuyahoga Falls, sent a brief letter to House Speaker Jon Husted, R-Kettering, stating his resignation was effective at 1 p.m. Wednesday without elaborating on a reason for his departure. He hasn't returned phone messages from the Beacon Journal left in the past four days.
Sources told the Beacon Journal that Widowfield sold football tickets on the Internet for more than their face value and pocketed the profits, and that he was the subject of a preliminary inquiry by the Joint Legislative Ethics Committee.
The committee, made up of self-regulating lawmakers, meets in secret, does not announce meetings and is bound by law to not comment about proceedings.
A lawmaker who uses campaign funds to buy and sell items for a profit could face investigations from the Legislative Inspector General, the Ohio Elections Commission and the Internal Revenue Service.
The Ohio Secretary of State's Office is looking into Widowfield's campaign finances as well.
House Republicans will name a replacement for Widowfield to serve the remainder of his term. A leading candidate is Richard Nero, who won the GOP primary in March to vie for the seat in November.
The Republican Party's new candidate for County Council will take on Democrat Paul Colavecchio in the November election. Colavecchio lost to Widowfield in a bid for state representative in 2006.
Heydorn is interested
Heydorn is hoping the party will consider tapping her, though some think this isn't likely. She's represented the district that covers Cuyahoga Falls, Hudson, Stow, Silver Lake and Munroe Falls for 16 years.
''I do hope that I will be considered,'' said Heydorn, who called party leaders this week to relay her interest. ''I think I'm the logical candidate to run.''
Widowfield, along with the other members of the Ohio General Assembly, have been reminded on at least three occasions since 2006 that selling Ohio State University tickets for a profit is illegal and unethical.
Ohio Legislative Inspector General Tony Bledsoe sent a letter to lawmakers in November 2006 as Ohio State was preparing to play Michigan. The teams were ranked No. 1 and 2 in the country, and single tickets were going for up to $1,500.
The inspector general noted the university provides complimentary tickets to some lawmakers and lets others purchase season tickets.
'Ohio's Ethics Law'
''If a legislator has football tickets given to her free of charge, or season tickets purchased via the university's offer to legislators, the tickets may not be sold for a profit. This conclusion is based not on any municipal ordinance, which may prevent ticket scalping, but on Ohio's Ethics Law,'' Bledsoe wrote.
Lawmakers cannot give the tickets to others to sell to split the profits and legislative staffers cannot resell the tickets for more than the face value.
''I believe it is prudent to share this reminder with members and employees,'' Bledsoe cautioned.
After Ohio State won and was going to the national championship game against Florida, Bledsoe sent a memorandum on Dec. 5, 2006, to lawmakers outlining reporting requirements for accepting gifts from lobbyists and the prohibitions against selling tickets or trip packages offered by the university for a profit.
In December 2007, as Ohio State was preparing to play Louisiana State University for the national championship the following month, Bledsoe sent a four-page memorandum to lawmakers, again reminding them of the strict rules for accepting gifts and purchasing and reselling tickets.
On Wednesday morning, the 10-member Joint Legislative Ethics Committee apparently met to review allegations that Widowfield had purchased tickets with campaign funds and sold them for a profit.
Ohio State grants the state's 132 lawmakers a chance to purchase up to four season tickets.
Thousands spent
Widowfield's campaign finance reports indicate he has purchased season tickets each year since 2002, when he paid $1,450 with campaign funds. He also reported paying Bill Napier, an OSU official, $90 on Nov. 14 and Nov. 20 of that same year for additional tickets right before the Buckeyes played Michigan.
From 2002 through 2006, Widowfield reported spending $7,842 from his legislative campaign committee on season tickets.
In 2007, Widowfield ran unsuccessfully for the Cuyahoga Falls Municipal Court clerk's office, but Ohio State continued to offer the opportunity to buy season tickets because he was still a House member.
Widowfield used his local campaign committee to buy season tickets last year and for the upcoming 2008 football season.
On Thursday, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner's office requested copies of Widowfield's campaign finance reports on file at the Summit County Board of Elections.
The inspector general's office is pursuing the matter. On Thursday, representatives from Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien's and Brunner's offices met with Bledsoe to discuss the case.
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705 or swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com.
Dennis J. Willard can be reached at 614-224-1613 or dwillard@thebeaconjournal.com.
Get the full article here.
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