WILL POLITICS PREVAIL OVER MERIT IN TODAY'S ELECTION?

TWO KEY RACES

FOR STARK CO SHERIFF

  DORDEA/MAIER

FOR STARK COUNTY 

COURT OF COMMON PLEAS JUDGE

HARTNETT/WERREN

VIDEOS

CITIZEN LEON COTE

"Honor Veterans

for

Their Sacrifices

in

Voting"

COUNCIL PRESIDENT ALLEN SCHULMAN

"If You Don't Vote; Don't Complain"

COUNCILMAN AT LARGE

RICHARD HART

"Every Vote Counts"

MAYOR WILLIAM J. HEALY, II

"Voting is a Way to Deal Politics"

Today, of course, citizens across this great land of ours set out to conclude our annual exercise of the vote.

The SCPR says "conclude" because it used to be that nearly all voting took place on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each year.

Today is also the birthday of Kasi Olson Chu in 1977.

In 1977, one had to have a reason provided for in law (a narrow band exceptions) to get the right to vote by absentee ballot.

But nowadays we have "no fault" voting by absentee ballot.  In fact, we have "early voting."

Nonetheless, the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November is "decision day" in the United States of America.

The right to vote is a precious right that is bathed in the blood of countless Americans who have fought the enemies of democratic-republicanism who have endeavored to take our freedoms (including the right to choose our leaders) away from us.

As of 2:09 p.m. yesterday, this is what Travis Secrest of the Stark County Board of Elections reported in terms of voting to date:

24,833 ballots have been returned/cast in person as of today.

Which of course means that some 225,000 remaining registered voters Stark Countians remain "unvoted" and today is election day for them.

Last night, the SCPR was at Canton City Council covering the important decisions being made by ward and at-large leadership elected on November 6, 2013.

Citizen Leon Cote of Canton proper stands front and center in today's blog as he adjures each and every Stark Countian who has not already voted to get out and vote.



Cote's focus on the 2,000,000 lives lost in defense of the American way of life including, of course, the precious right to vote is particularly meaningful to the SCPR.

Tying today as being the birthday of daughter Kasi to Cote's theme, the Olsons are proud that Kasi has grown up to be a member of the United States Air Force as a medical doctor.

Like Cote, the Olson family has made a point of making "election day" a special day.

Every election day during the years that our daughters were growing up in Lake Township, we would rouse them from their sleep at 6:00 a.m. and head to the polls.

Of course, there was a reward for their having sacrifice some sleep.

After voting, the family headed to a local restaurant for breakfast.

Another strong proponent of the American way of life and perhaps Stark County's leading small letter "d" democrat is Canton City Council president Allen Schulman.



The SCPR adopts Schulman's statement "if you don't vote, you can't complain."

Citizen Cote both votes and complains about the failures of local government, and, from time to time, lauds the mayor and Canton City Council members for their "helpful to the citizens" actions.

He is a regular in Canton City Council's "Public Speaks" forum and thereby presents an additional (in addition to voting year-in, year-out) model for Stark Countians.

Councilman Richard Hart (independent, at-large) also weighed in with an admonition for all Stark Countians to get out to vote today.



Hart, in 2013, was thought by many including the SCPR to have a hopeless task in running for council (his being a long time Republican [a former councilman years ago] and now a political independent]) in the face of opposition from a well-placed Democrat in a 9 to 1 Democratic majority of registered voters city.

Nobody anticipated that the Democrat would "politically" self-destruct over allegations of failure to keep his Canton properties up to standard and tax paying issues.

But he did.  And Hart was an easy "switch to" for Canton's Democratic voting core.

Last but certainly not least is His Honor the mayor of the city of Canton, William J. Healy, II.



Healy points out in the following video that "politics" (Republican versus Democrat) certainly affect each and every one of us in our daily lives.

His example is the dispute between national and state level Democrats and Republicans is how much "early voting" there should be.

Organized Democrats think that the more "early voting" there is, the better the prospects for Democrat candidates.

Organized Republicans, on other hand, thinks it diminishes their candidates' chances.

On a different level, the SCPR thinks that an underlying choice in today's Hartnett/Werren Stark County Court of Common Pleas and the Dordea/Maier sheriff match ups are a local referendum on whether or not merit or politics is going to prevail.

The Report thinks that however one views the candidates from a "political loyalty" perspective,  it takes quite a leap to think that Republican gubernatorial appointee Curtis Warren who has not practiced law in several years and who is not ranked by the Stark County Bar Association members as highly as Chryssa Hartnett merits being chosen over Hartnett.

Ditto on the Dordea/Maier race.

It could be that "political power politics" will prevail in this contest.

George T. Maier, who the SCPR thinks has "unanswered" character issues and, is,  with his brother and former Stark County Democratic Party chairman Johnnie A. Maier, Jr trying to bully George into being elected without answering some very serious questions.

And, it might work.

But such is not good for the health of our democratic-republic.

As imperfect as it is, the American system of elections is unparalleled in the world.

In a recent election over whether or not Scotland would remain part of the United Kingdom, the Scots voted at an 85% rate.

In the 2014 Stark County primary election, in one Canton precinct (in Councilwoman's Chris Smith's ward), 2.03% of the registered voters voted.

2.03%!!!

Those numbers should tell Smith that she needs to get up off of her duff and start jawboning her constituents about the critical importance that they participate in our election.

Otherwise, as Schulman says:  The SCPR does not want to hear their complaints about the unfairness, inequities and the like of Canton, Ohio and American government.

Voting is a "minimum" standard of participation in the American system of government.

2.03% is simply outrageous and is tantamount to a dishonoring of those who have given their last measure to preserve our rights and freedoms.

Beyond the 2.03% number, those Stark Countians who have no understandable or acceptable reason for not voting are no better that the 97.97% of the Ward 4 precinct registered voters who failed to vote in May, 2014.

And, by the way.

Happy Birthday, Kasi.

Go Vote!  As your mom and dad taught you.