Events Calendar
In This Section
Most Read Stories
Teen who zapped nipples during shop class sues
Akron teen shot to death outside home
Donors pay millions to put their names in UA stadium
Winning an NBA title drives Cavs new coach Byron Scott
Browns cut Brandon McDonald, who Twitters about move
Volunteer, 90, has ultimate job
Blogs:
Cleveland Browns:
Transcript from conference call with Browns GM Tom Heckert
Marla Ridenour on Sports:
Browns gamble and lose on Hardesty
Varsity Letters:
Firestone’s Miller qualifies for 2012 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials
The330:
Area drummer lives rock ’n’ roll dream on a national tour with a famous fan
Tribe Matters:
First Bell - On Education:
Connie Hathorn to lead Youngstown
The Heldenfiles:
"Babies" DVD/BD Details
Pets:
The Fly Mask Debacle
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Cavs change uniforms … again
Akron Zips:
Thoughts on the game
Kent State Sports:
Monte Simmons Fractures Left Fibula
Akron Docs in Haiti:
Orphans in Fondwa
Buckeye Blogging:
‘The Shoe’ is Open for Business
All Da King's Men:
The Man Behind The Curtain
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Akron Law Café:
Using IP to build bridges
Car Chase:
SNEAK PEEK AT 2010 GLENMOOR GATHERING
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Love Is In The Air (SING IT!)
Sound Check:
Robert Wilson, Gap Band bassist, dies
See Jane Style:
Making It Up
HRLite House:
From the White House – New Federal Approach to Hiring
56 candidates running for City Council in Sept. 8 primary, with several slates vying for 3 at-large and 10 ward seats
By Stephanie Warsmith
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Sunday, Aug 23, 2009
That's nearly 20 more candidates than in either of the past two elections.
All 10 ward seats will be contested in the Sept. 8 primary, and all but two races have three or more candidates. Fifteen people will vie for three at-large seats — five more than in either 2001 or 2005.
Also unique this election are several slates — a phenomenon that hasn't been seen in Akron since the mid-1990s, when a reform group opposed to Mayor Don Plusquellic and council incumbents loosely banded together.
This time, the Democratic at-large race includes reform candidates, a slate backed by Plusquellic and two incumbents running together.
There also are several candidates with recognizable names, like Linda Omobien, a longtime school board member who has run citywide five times, and first-time candidate Kelly Mendenhall, wife of Akron attorney Warner Mendenhall, who led the recent unsuccessful recall attempt against Plusquellic.
Republicans are also in the fray, with four candidates competing for at-large spots on a council that has been a Democratic monopoly for more than a decade.
The top three vote-getters from each party will compete in the Nov. 3 general election for the at-large seats.
Why so much interest? Theories include a continuing fervor from President Barack Obama's campaign, a backlash because of the economy and people looking for paychecks.
Steve Brooks, associate director of the University of Akron's Bliss Institute for Applied Politics, thinks there's more to Akron's crowded ballot. He pointed out that there aren't large groups of people running in other local races. Consider Cuyahoga Falls, where the mayor and ward council members are unopposed in
the primary.
''This has a lot to do with the recall and the attention paid to local politics,'' Brooks said. ''That gets people thinking and interested. Some of the folks running were recruited by both sides of that ongoing conflict.''
Finley leads slate
Former Akron Councilman Joe Finley assembled the largest slate on the ballot, with two at-large and six ward candidates.
If all are elected, the Democrats for Reform would claim a majority on council.
The slate's at-large contenders are Finley and Richard Burroughs, a first-time candidate and business owner who ran afoul of City Hall in 2004 over a West Akron youth baseball league dispute.
Finley, a retired Akron teacher, had an impressive showing against Plusquellic in the 2007 Democratic primary, garnering 47 percent of the vote.
Burroughs and Finley say council needs more ''independent thinkers'' who aren't afraid to challenge Plusquellic. They label all of the council members as rubber stampers, except for Bruce Kilby, the Ward 2 councilman and the only incumbent on their reform slate.
''Council and the administration shouldn't be bedfellows,'' Finley said, adding that this union would be ''unholy.''
The two think safety is Akron's most pressing issue and they unveiled a proposal last week to trim about $550,000 a year from the city's budget to help pay for 23 more police officers. The cuts include eliminating three Cabinet positions, combining two departments and reducing pay for council, the mayor and the Cabinet by 10 percent.
Plusquellic immediately criticized the group's plan for falling short of addressing Akron's projected end-of-year deficit of $12 million.
Burroughs and Finley, who have a $5 bet on who between them will be the top vote-getter, have pledged to serve only two terms.
''After that, if I can't get my good ideas across, I will step down and let someone else have a shot,'' Burroughs said.
Mayor backs trio
Plusquellic is backing three at-large candidates — only one who currently holds the post.
He's supporting Jim Shealey, a Ward 5 councilman who was appointed last year to an at-large seat; Terry Albanese, the Ward 6 councilwoman; and Jeff Fusco, a retired deputy service director and former councilman.
''It is critical the mayor and council work together productively to forge solutions,'' Plusquellic said in a mailer for his slate.
Shealey said he doesn't want Akron council to become a ''slug fest'' like Cleveland's, where ''nothing gets accomplished.''
''Council has to have continuity — to have people who are concerned about the city more so than their own political moves,'' he said.
Albanese said she has disagreed with Plusquellic ''when I have the reason to.''
All three said Akron's most critical issue is jobs. They said the city must do all it can to create and retain jobs to help its income tax base.
Fusco thinks the city also should explore consolidation with the county and other entities to save money.
Shealey said Akron is being forced to make drastic budget cuts, including layoffs, much later than other Ohio cities — thanks to council and the administration.
''I think the recession will come to an end and we are going to survive it,'' he said. ''I look forward to the things we can do when we bounce back.''
Two-man campaign
At-large Councilmen Mike Williams and John Conti, who have a combined 40 years of council experience, are running a two-man campaign.
They have been on the outs with Plusquellic since 2006, when Williams — supported by Conti — unsuccessfully tried to oust Council President Marco Sommerville, a close politically ally of the mayor's.
Two years later, the two councilmen spoke out against Plusquellic's proposal to lease the city's sewers to fund scholarships.
This year, they abstained from voting on a council resolution opposing Plusquellic's recall.
The last move resulted in Conti and Williams being included on a mailer sent by the anti-recall committee last week, labeling them as part of ''Mendenhall's gang of radicals'' trying to ''take over city council.''
Conti said he and Williams aren't part of any gang. He said he didn't support the resolution because he thought council should remain neutral.
The two say they offer something the other two slates lack: experience, combined with a willingness to break from the administration.
''We are responsive to citizens,'' Williams said. ''That's who we work for. We don't work for the mayor.''
The two say council should seek input on the public's budget priorities. Williams thinks residents care about whether they feel safe and whether the chuckholes on their street have been filled.
''They don't give a crap about economic development,'' he said.
Williams and Conti said council should discuss a safety forces levy, a step Plusquellic and Sommerville oppose.
No slate affiliation
Four other Democrats are running at-large and aren't attached to any slate.
Omobien, an Akron school board member since 1994 and former Ohio School Boards Association president, decided to run because she wanted a new challenge while remaining in public service. She was recruited to join a slate — she wouldn't say which one — but declined.
''I felt that I wanted to go in on my own merit,'' she said.
Omobien thinks her school board experience, particularly facing extreme budget cuts, would make her an asset. She opposed the recall and said she ''has nothing but positive things to say'' about Plusquellic.
Kelly Mendenhall, however, doesn't have many good things to say about the mayor. She decided to run because of her work on the recall effort. She found she enjoyed going door to door and talking to citizens.
''Even if they didn't agree with the recall, that does not mean they are happy with the way things are going,'' she said.
Mendenhall said she wasn't invited to be part of the reform slate, though she shares its concerns.
''We need to have people who respect different views,'' said Mendenhall, a stay-at-home mother of two. ''I would like to do what's right for the people of this city. I don't like how I see them getting mistreated.''
Mendenhall, who acknowledged her lack of political experience, thinks Plusquellic's Cabinet needs to be cut, rather than losing police or firefighters.
John Drexler, 26, also is a political novice. The 2007 University of Akron graduate, who is operating his own lawn-care business, described himself as ''an ordinary citizen.''
''With my help, we can get the citizens to stand up and start to make a difference,'' he said.
Drexler offers a typed, outlined list of ideas to improve the economy, education and crime.
Heather Nagel, the last Democratic candidate, is facing charges related to the operation of an Akron animal shelter. She declined a request for an interview.
GOP candidates
With the local Democratic party in turmoil, David Sutter is hoping Akron residents might do something radical: Vote Republican.
''If people want change, they should vote for a good candidate — not just based on Democrat or Republican,'' said Sutter, co-owner and president of Excelsior Marking, a marking products business in Akron.
Akron council hasn't had a GOP member since John Frank decided not to run again in 1997.
Sutter thinks his business background would help in dealing with the city's budget problems and in attracting companies and jobs. He also thinks the city needs to ''show more support'' to police and fire.
''I hate to see us talking about decreasing them when crime is an issue,'' he said.
Sutter said he's not a politician. He's a businessman.
''I will make tough decisions on what's best for the community,'' he said. ''I don't owe any favors.''
Michelle Dimeff, Joshua Lee Jones and David Kirschbaum, three other Republican candidates, either didn't return phone messages or declined requests for interviews.
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705 or swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com.
Get the full article here.
Most Commented Stories
- 45
- 27
- 22
- 21
- 19
- 18
- 18
- 10
- 7
- 5
