BUCYRUS — Local residents braved icy roads and chilling temperatures Wednesday for the Democratic Candidates Night at the Bucyrus Public Library and on Thursday at Bucyrus High School for the Republican Candidates Night.
Democratic candidates speaking Wednesday, at the event sponsored by the Mid-Ohio Progressives and Crawford County Democrats, included three candidates running for the fourth district seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, a seat currently occupied by Republican Jim Jordan.
The first of the three candidates to speak at the event, Shannon Freshour of Marysville, said she grew up the daughter of a hard-working single mom who regularly lived paycheck to paycheck.
“My mom taught us the importance of education and luckily, the state of Ohio thought it was important too. I was one of the first Head Start kids in Ohio,” Freshour said.
She said she will fight for equal rights for workers and to cut taxes for the middle class while working to protect Medicare and other health care options for everyone.
One of her two opponents, Mike Larsen of Plain City, is an Emmy-nominated writer and producer who has written for several television shows, including The Drew Carey Show and Ellen.
“I have run a business, been a member of four unions and served as a senior advisor to progressive democratic Congresswoman Jackie Speier,” Larsen said.
U.S. Army veteran Jeffrey A. Sites of Lima is the third democrat on the primary ballot to vie for the seat in November and said he is tired of the status quo in Washington D.C.
“Congress needs members who are not part of the one percent,” Sites said.
He said he understands first-hand the struggles of the middle class and is running to give people a voice that Congress seems to have forgotten about.
Also during the event, Cassie Herschler, director of the Crawford County Council on Aging, gave information about a renewal levy of one-mill and an increase of .75-mil to maintain services to seniors throughout Crawford County, including home-delivered meals, homemaker and chore services and transportation services.
Democratic candidates unopposed on the primary ballot also spoke to the audience, including Crawford County Sheriff Scott Kent, Craig Swartz, who is running for state senator for the 26th district, and state representative for the 87th district candidate Nick Barnes.
At the Republican Candidates Night, hosted by the Crawford County Central Republican Committee, several candidates running unopposed in the primary introduced themselves to the crowd, including Crawford County Prosecutor Matt Crall, third district court of appeals judge candidate Mark C. Miller, current state representative for the 87th district Riordan McClain, Common Pleas Court Clerk Candidate Janelle Moore, county recorder Julie Wells, county treasurer Cindy Edwards, Probate and Juvenile Court Judge candidate Patrick Murphy and candidates for the Republican Central Committee.
Melissa Ackison of Marysville, who is running against Bill Reineke in the republican primary for the seat of state senator for the 26th district, said she has not accepted donations from special interest groups or PACS, as she is the candidate for the people. Reineke was unable to attend the event.
The winner of the republican primary will compete with Swartz in November for the seat currently held by David Burke.
Four candidates for the Crawford County Commissioners seat currently occupied by Mo Ressallat, who is not seeking reelection, were asked questions by Galion Mayor Tom O’Leary and attorney Michael Bear of the Republican Central Committee. Those candidates included Amber Wertman, Larry Schmidt, Terry Gribble and Michael E. Schiefer.
Gribble has managed the Galion YMCA for 40 years while Wertman has moved up the ranks quickly in the United Way Organization. Schmidt has managed NAPA Fisher Auto Parts in Bucyrus for nearly three decades and Schiefer worked for as along at Timken before taking a job in Columbus then working for Bucyrus Road Materials for the past six years.
When asked how each candidate could serve the entire county better than previous commissioners, all four answered similarly, agreeing that they should visit all areas of the county on a regular basis and host evening meetings so people can attend who work during the day.
In a second commissioner race, newcomer Jeff Price will vie for the position against incumbent commissioner Doug Weisenauer.
Price said the commissioners do not currently provide enough information on their meeting agendas to inform the public of topics being discussed and that would change if he is elected to the position. Weisenauer agreed to offer more information and evening meetings could also be offered.
The deadline to register to vote in the March 17 primary is Feb. 18 with early voting beginning Feb. 19 at the Crawford County Board of Elections in the lower level of the courthouse in Bucyrus and online.