The two biggest winners on the evening of November 7th were incumbent-Councilwoman-at-large Julie Jakmides and "I finally made it" Alliance council-at-large candidate Brian Simone.
In August, 2017, Jakmides walked out of a council meeting (LINK to an account of that meeting) because she thought she and her fellow council members were being disrespected by Dreger/the administration in refusing to discuss in public questions she and other council members had about the handling of certain matters by Dreger and the administration.
In a late October, 2017 University of Mount Union on Alliance City Council candidates forum covered extensively by the SCPR (LINK), Democratic candidate David Smith tried to make an issue of Jakmides' walk out.
So much for trying. Jakmides overwhelming win shows that the "walk-out," if anything, enhanced Jakmides favor with Alliance voters.
Look at the numbers in the graphic shown above (note: base data provided by the Stark County Board of Elections).
Jakmides (in unofficial returns) 401 votes over well known fellow Republican Roger Rhome and over 800 over Democrat Brian Simone (the 3rd of three selections to be made) a person who has made a number of attempts to get elected to Alliance's legislative body.
Jakmides likely will also be Law Director Jennifer Arnold's worst nightmare going forward over law department/administration spending decisions on outside legal services.
Jakmides openly sided with Democratic candidate Mark Whitaker (corrected from original version) in 2015 when Arnold ran for retention as law director after having been appointed by an Alliance political party process in 2014. Whitaker lost narrowly to Arnold (corrected from original version) which the SCPR thinks was largely due to Jakmides support of his candidacy. Nearly every other, if not all, elected Alliance elected officials supported Arnold's re-election.
The characteristic that the SCPR likes about Jakmides above nearly every (perhaps, every) other Stark County political subdivision is her pre-eminent commitment to accountable, accessible, communicative, open and transparent government.
Though a solid supporter of Republican approaches to governance, Jakmides appears to the SCPR to be first and foremost devoted to effective, efficient and qualitative government in the best interest of the entire electorate (Democratic, "independent" or Republican) no matter what her political party's stance might be.
If there is a co-incidents, "fine and dandy." But, if not, she shows no reluctance at all to depart from the party line.
Jakmides got a plurality in 15 of the 17 Alliance voting precinct wards and tied for the lead in the 16th.
Julie Jakmides is good friends with Stephanie Werren who was on November 7th re-elected to a new term as North Canton Ward 3 represented.
To boot, Werren is director of Leadership Stark County (an effort of the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce, CRCOC).
Jakmides and the SCPR have differed on Warren. And, Jakmides has differed with The Report on another blog.
But to The Stark County Political Report, mature public officials disagree without becoming disagreeable and do not cut off communications/accountability because of differences with a given media perspective.
Councilwoman Julie Jakmides consistently demonstrates an uncommon political maturity in functioning as a public official.
To the SCPR, Jakmides is nearly everything a councilperson ought to be in terms of understanding the priorities that an elected official ought to be about whereas Werren is quite the opposite.
If the CRCOC had its head on straight, Julie Jakmides would be its director and not Stephanie Werren in terms of their respective conduct a municipal legislators.
If more Stark County political subdivision elected official operated like Councilwoman Jakmides, then they would like experience the same electoral success that she did on November 7th.
The SCPR applauds Jakmides being a principled politician who thereby engenders the abiding support of the Alliance voting public.
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