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Healy ousts Creighton. Republican Norton defeats Democrat Padrutt to lead city of Green
By Rick Armon and Stephanie Warsmith Beacon Journal staff writers
Published on Wednesday, Nov 07, 2007
The Democratic Party knocked off Canton's Republican mayor Tuesday, despite a strong push by the GOP to keep the seat.
Meanwhile, Republicans scored a victory in Green, the other premier mayoral race in the Akron-Canton area.
State Rep. William Healy II beat Canton Mayor Janet Weir Creighton. In Green, retired businessman Dick Norton defeated Councilman Andy Padrutt.
''I'm very excited,'' Healy said from his campaign party at the Desert Inn in Canton. ''We spent nearly a year working on this. Anytime you work this hard and get the results we got, you've got to be happy.''
Healy received 53.36 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results.
Republicans used Canton as a testing ground for get-out-the-vote techniques that could be repeated in the 2008 presidential election. The Democrats also identified Canton as a target race in Ohio.
''I think both parties thought this would be a significant race for what comes up in the congressional race, how the area is perceived and the elections next year,'' Healy said, referring to the seat
held by U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula, R-Navarre, who recently announced he will retire at the end of his term. ''The real effects, we will find out next year. For now, it was a good day for the Democrats.''
Throughout the campaign, Healy attacked Creighton on such issues as job losses and crime. Creighton defended her record and said her opponent exaggerated the problems.
''Talking to voters, it was clear they were looking for a change,'' Healy said. ''We now have the opportunity to do that.''
Creighton could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.
The Green contest was considered the top mayor's race in Summit County, partly because of the amount of money spent — about $170,000 through mid-October — and the lack of an incumbent. And though the race was nonpartisan on the ballot, Republicans financially backed Norton, and Democrats supported Padrutt.
Norton, 58, a retired divisional president and chief executive of FirstMerit Bank, received 54.7 percent of the vote. He had stressed his business background in the campaign and said those qualifications probably helped him get elected in his first run for political office.
''I am just really glad this is over,'' Norton said, referring to the campaign.
He has identified three major priorities for his administration: schools, traffic, and growth and development.
In other area mayoral races:
Hartville
Retired real estate broker Ed Tucker defeated incumbent Beverly L. Green and Councilwoman Linda R. Miller, winning a four-year term.
He received 58.4 percent of the vote. Tucker, 72, who had never run for political office, has said he wants to build cooperation between the mayor's office and council, and to promote the village industrial park.
Green had been mayor since 2004, but had faced numerous controversies in recent years.
Lakemore
Write-in candidate Mike Kolomichuk pulled off — as he put it Tuesday night — a ''nearly impossible task.''
He defeated two-term incumbent David E. Carter, a Democrat, and Republican candidate Eleanor Morgan. He received 52 percent of the vote. Carter got 40 percent, while Morgan got 7.6 percent.
Kolomichuk, 58, the owner of American Winds Flight Academy, said he benefited from recent state audits that have been highly critical of village record-keeping, and from a county revitalization initiative that has some residents of the small community along Springfield Lake worried about whether their properties will be torn down.
Mogadore
Michael A. Rick won a four-year term, defeating incumbent Steve Marks. Rick, a former councilman, received 53 percent of the vote.
Rick, 45, is a probation officer and supervisor with the Summit County Adult Probation Department. He has said he wants to revitalize the downtown area, improve the village's infrastructure, create an economic development plan, and build a stronger working relationship with the Summit and Portage County governments.
Norton
Republican David L. Koontz, a professional engineer, defeated three other candidates, including two independents.
Koontz, 50, has said he wants to ''restore our citizens' confidence in City Hall'' and help spur economic development. He is a project manager and engineer with CTI Environmental Engineers. He received 62 percent of the vote and will serve a four-year term.
He defeated Democrat Tom Jones, who had pushed an issue that would dissolve the city's Police Department; former Mayor Amy Addis; and retired postal worker Norman R. Kendall.
Streetsboro
Councilman Thomas J. Wagner defeated four others, including three write-in candidates, to win a four-year term. He received only 39 percent of the vote.
Wagner, 68, beat city Planning Director Linda Kovacs and write-ins Glenn M. Broska, Julie Sanders and Ron Stenglein.
Wadsworth
Republican Robin Laubaugh won a four-year term, defeating two opponents. She received 54.7 percent of the vote.
Laubaugh, 46, a financial consultant and City Council member, defeated Democrat Joseph J. Arpad and independent candidate Chuck Pfeister.
Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com. Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705 or swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com.
The Democratic Party knocked off Canton's Republican mayor Tuesday, despite a strong push by the GOP to keep the seat.
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