ELECTION 2002 COVERAGE

Taft easily wins second term as Ohio governor
Ohio voters gave Governor Bob Taft an overwhelming mandate on Election Day, as he easily defeated his two opponents, Democrat Tim Hagan and John Eastman of the Natural Law Party, to win a second term in the governor’s mansion.

But Yellow Springs voters, always a step out of the mainstream, sent a different message with their ballots. In the village, Hagan, a former Cuyahoga County commissioner, won handily, Eastman, the hometown candidate who was listed as an independent on the ballot, came in second and Taft trailed in third place.

Overall in Ohio, Taft, who won his first term as governor in 1998, won 58 percent of the vote, or 1,136,123 votes, compared with Hagan’s 38 percent, or 1,213,967, and 4 percent, or 124,508 votes, for Eastman.

Taft carried Greene County, receiving 28,053 votes, compared with Hagan’s 11,477 and Eastman’s 2,201. About 46 percent of Greene County voters took part in the election.

Yellow Springs voters chose Hagan with 1,082 votes, followed by Eastman with 332 votes and Taft with 269.

In Precinct 440, the north side of town, Hagan came in first with 308 votes, then Eastman with 91 and Taft with 87. Voters in Precinct 441, the west side of town, chose Hagan with 257 votes, then Eastman with 76 and Taft with 51.

In Precinct 442, the center of the village bordered by High Street on the west and Corry Street on the east, voters selected Hagan with 236 votes, Eastman with 101 and Taft with 54. Villagers in Precinct 443 on the south edge of town cast 281 votes for Hagan, 77 for Taft and 64 for Eastman.

In Precinct 440, 58 percent of voters went to the polls on a rainy Tuesday. In Precinct 441, 57 percent of voters showed up, a little more than 41 percent of the registered voters in Precinct 442 voted and in Precinct 443 almost 63 percent cast ballots.

In Miami Township outside of the village, voters chose Taft.

In Precinct 455, east of the village, bordered on the west by Meredith Road, 62 percent of voters went to the polls, casting 146 votes for Taft, 78 for Hagan and 26 for Eastman.

In Precinct 456, the western half of the township, 60 percent of voters showed up and also went for Taft, who received 128 votes, while Hagan had 104 and Eastman received 55.

Taft campaigned on a platform of making budget priorities of higher education, primary and secondary education and economic development. He also promoted the Third Frontier Project, which seeks to join universities and industry to increase research and create jobs.

In the current state budget, the Taft administration, facing a looming deficit, cut more than $240 million from higher education in order to balance the budget. Taft has acknowledged that facing a budget deficit will be the greatest challenge of his second term.

Hagan campaigned on a platform of balancing the state budget, shifting some school funding responsibility from citizens to the state and holding corporations responsible.

Eastman’s campaign centered on improving the education system and lowering state expenses by promoting prevention-oriented programs to help deal with welfare reform, health care and criminal justice.

Reid victorious in Commission race
The Republican Party remains the dominant political force in Greene County as Republican Marilyn J. Reid defeated her Democratic opponent, Eric G. Marcus, in the Greene County commissioners race in Tuesday’s election.

With nearly 46 percent of the registered voters in the county heading to the polls, Reid garnered 53 percent of the vote, or 21,569 votes, while Marcus received 47 percent, or 19,103 votes, according to unofficial results from the Greene County Board of Elections.

Reid will join fellow Republicans Ralph Harper and W. Reed Madden on the Board of Commissioners. Reid will replace Kathryn K. Hagler, who is retiring after serving five terms on the Commission.

Reid, an attorney and executive director of the Greene County Republican Party, will receive a four-year term on the Commission.

While Reid won countywide, it was a different story in Yellow Springs and Miami Township.

Yellow Springs voters overwhelmingly supported Marcus, the former president and CEO of a Domino’s Pizza franchise, 1,394 to 232. In fact, throughout the village’s four precincts, Marcus was the favored candidate.

In Precinct 440, the north end of town, Marcus received 405 votes, while Reid received 77. In Precinct 441, the eastern side of Yellow Springs, Marcus had 326 votes to Reid’s 42.

Marcus received 328 votes while Reid had 46 in Precinct 442, the central and downtown portions of town. And in Precinct 443, the south end of the village, voters cast 335 votes for Marcus and 67 for Reid.

The results were similar, though closer, in Miami Township, where Marcus received 280 votes, while Reid received 234.

In Precinct 456, which includes the western half of the township outside Yellow Springs, Marcus received 171 votes to Reid’s 104.

Voters in Precinct 455, the eastern half of the township, however, threw their support Reid’s way, casting 130 for her, while Marcus received 109.

Voters reject State Issue 1
Voters defeated Issue 1, the only statewide issue on the Ohio ballot this year, in Tuesday’s election.

The issue proposed to offer first- and second-time nonviolent drug users the opportunity to receive state-funded medical treatment instead of incarceration.

Ohio voters defeated the proposal 67 percent to 33 percent. Nearly 2 million Ohioans voted against Issue 1, while almost 987,000 voters supported it.

In Yellow Springs, however, the issue made substantial gains, with 1,005 local residents voting in favor of it, and 516 against the proposal.

Miami Township voters, living outside of Yellow Springs, voted against the issue, 278 to 224.

Greene County voters soundly defeated Issue 1, with 26,029 voters, or 66 percent, against it and 13,244, or 33 percent supporting it.

Proponents of the issue, among them billionaire and libertarian George Soros, argued that offering drug users treatment instead of jail time would save the state money.

Opponents, who were lead by Ohio First Lady Hope Taft, said the issue would limit the penalties judges could impose on offenders.

Race for U.S. House of Representatives—
Hobson elected to 7th term
While incumbent Dave Hobson scored an easy victory in his race for the Ohio 7th Congressional District, in Yellow Springs he fell behind his two competitors, both of whom live in the village.

Democrat Kara Anastasio carried Yellow Springs by a wide margin, while Green Party candidate Frank Doden, who was listed as an independent on the ballot, narrowly edged out Hobson.

But in the 7th District, Hobson, a Republican who earned his seventh term in the U.S. House of Representatives, received 68 percent of the vote, or 111,999 votes. Anastasio carried 27 percent, or 44,634 votes, and Doden was the favorite of 5 percent of the voters, or 8,628.

The newly redrawn 7th District includes all of Greene, Clark, Fairfield, Fayette, Perry and Pickaway counties, and parts of Franklin and Ross counties. Champaign, Logan and Union counties were removed from the district.

Hobson, a former state senator from Springfield, emphasized in his campaign support for the Medicare prescription drug plan, economic development and homeland security preparedness, while Anastasio focused on education, health care and education. Doden emphasized health care, education and economic issues, his opposition to a possible war against Iraq and his refusal to take corporate campaign contributions.

In Greene County, voters opted for Hobson with 71 percent of the vote, or 30,064 votes. Anastasio received 23 percent of the vote, or 9,678 votes, and Doden garnered 5 percent, 2,151 votes.

Anastasio carried the election in Yellow Springs with 964 votes. Doden drew support from 366 voters, while Hobson won 350 votes.

Voters in Precinct 440, the north end of the village, chose Anastasio with 278 votes, followed by Hobson with 111 and Doden with 102. On the west side of town, Precinct 441, Anastasio won 244 votes, compared to 75 for Hobson and 64 for Doden.

Precinct 442, in the center of the village, also went for Anastasio, giving her 230 votes, followed by 100 for Doden and 63 for Hobson. In the south end of town, Precinct 443, voters chose Anastasio with 212 votes, followed by Hobson with 101 votes and Doden with 100.

Miami Township voters, who live outside the village, favored Hobson in both precincts. Voters in Precinct 455, east of the village, cast 166 votes for Hobson, 69 for Anastasio and 19 for Doden.

Precinct 456 voters chose Hobson with 142 votes, followed by 115 for Anastasio and 30 for Doden.

Stratton, O’Connor win seats on Supreme Court
Lieutenant Governor Maureen O’Connor and incumbent Evelyn Stratton, both Republicans, won the two open seats on the Ohio Supreme Court in Tuesday’s election.

Stratton, who was first elected to the Supreme Court in 1996, defeated Janet Burnside, a Cuyahoga Common Pleas judge, 55 percent to 45 percent.

Stratton received 1,569,873 votes, while Burnside garnered 1,270,032 votes.

Stratton easily defeated Burnside in Greene County, 23,218 votes to 15,139.

Yellow Springs voters, however, supported Burnside, 1,033 449,

Voters in Miami Township living outside of Yellow Springs also favored Burnside over Stratton, 487 to 357.

O’Connor, who will replace retiring Justice Andrew Douglas on the bench, overwhelmingly defeated Hamilton County Municipal Court Judge Tim Black, 57 percent to 43 percent.

O’Conner received 1,677,647 votes, while Black received 1,253,374.

Once again in Yellow Springs, voters supported the underdog, supporting Black 984 to 520.

Voters in Miami Township, however, preferred O’Connor, 258 to 226.

O’Conner also won Greene County, 23,736 to 15,255.

When their terms commence, O’Connor and Stratton will join Justices Deborah Cook and Alice Robie, as the first female majority on the Ohio Supreme Court. O’Connor, Stratton, Cook along with Chief Justice Thomas Moyer are all now part of the Republican majority on the Supreme Court.

In race for the Ohio House—
Widener wins 84th District
Voters in Greene, Clark and Madison counties chose Republican Chris Widener for the Ohio House of Representatives, 84th District, but in Yellow Springs voters favored his opponent, Democrat Natalie Tackett.

In the three counties, Widener won 62 percent of the vote, or 21,324 votes, while Tackett received 37 percent, or 12,770 votes.

An architect, Widener focused his campaign on maintaining a balanced budget, maintaining effective prison and law enforcement systems, and encouraging business development. Tackett, an attorney, emphasized her support for closing tax loopholes for corporations and improving school funding.

In Greene County, Widener received 63 percent of the vote, or 7,600 votes, and Tackett won 36 percent, or 4,395 votes.

But those numbers were reversed in Yellow Springs, where Tackett was the clear winner.

Village voters cast 1,390 votes for Tackett, compared to 211 for Widener.

Voters in Precinct 440, the northern part of the village, cast 414 votes for Tackett compared to 69 for Widener. Precinct 441 voters favored Tackett by 332 votes to 38 for Widener.

In the center of the village, voters living in Precinct 442 chose Tackett with 342 votes, compared to Widener’s 41. In the south part of the village in Precinct 443, Tackett also won 342 votes and Widener won 63.

In the rural areas of Miami Township, the race was close, with 268 voters favoring Tackett and 253 voting for Widener.

Widener won his sole Yellow Springs area victory in Miami Township’s precinct 455, where he won 133 votes and Tackett received 108. In the township’s precinct 456, Tackett was the victor with 160 votes, compared to Widener’s 120.

GOP sweeps state contests
Republicans swept the statewide races in Tuesday’s General Election winning races for governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor and treasurer.

In the race for attorney general, Republican Jim Petro easily defeated his Democratic opponent, Leigh Herington, 64 percent to 36 percent. Petro, the current state auditor, received 1,971,512 votes, while Herington received 1,099,826 votes.

In Greene County, Petro received 29,917 votes compared to Herington’s 11,198.

Voters in Yellow Springs, however, overwhelmingly supported Herington, casting 1,327 votes for the state senator. Petro received 315 votes in Yellow Springs.

Voters in Miami Township living outside of Yellow Springs voted in Petro’s favor, 311 to 217.

In a switch of offices with Petro, current Republican Attorney General Betty Montgomery won the race for state auditor, besting Democrat Helen K. Smith 1,974,492 votes, or 64 percent, to 1,091,987, or 36 percent.

Voters in Yellow Springs supported Smith with 1,268 votes, while Montgomery received 379.

In Miami Township, Montgomery received 322 votes compared to Smith’s 206.

Montgomery carried Greene County with 29,757 votes. Smith received 11,271 votes.

Republican incumbent Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell was re-elected for a second term when he defeated his Democratic opponent, Bryan Flannery, 1,795,382 votes, or 59 percent, to 1,231,146 votes, or 41 percent.

Greene County voters supported Blackwell with 28,263 votes, while Flannery received 12,372.

In Yellow Springs, Flannery received 1,242 votes, while Blackwell received 319.

Voters in Miami Township went with the rest of the state, supporting Blackwell with 294 votes. Flannery received 229.

The race for state treasurer was much closer as incumbent Republican Joseph Deters edged out Democrat Mary Boyle, 53 percent to 47 percent. Statewide, Deters received 1,637,803 votes, while Boyle received 1,429,495 votes.

Like the other state races, however, Yellow Springs voters differed with other Ohioans. Boyle defeated Deters here, receiving 1,409 votes to Deters’s 242.

Voters living in Miami Township also preferred Boyle, casting 265 for her and 264 votes for Deters.

In Greene County, Deters received 26,079 votes, while Boyle had 14,972.

Uncontested races

Six uncontested races took place in Greene County. Greene County Auditor Luwanna Delaney, a Republican, earned another four-year term in office.

In addition, the following judges ran unopposed: Stephen A. Wolaver, Common Pleas Court; Steven L. Hurley, Common Pleas, domestic division; Robert A. Hagler, Common Pleas, probate division; Tim Campbell, Common Pleas; and William H. Wolff Jr., the only Democrat in this group, 2nd District Court of Appeals.