There will be a variety of candidates to choose from in the upcoming election this fall. Candidates from every corner of Adams County filed their petitions by the required deadline on Wednesday for the general election to be held on November 5th.
In West Union Village, incumbent Mayor Ted Grooms picked up a petition along with Councilman Jason Buda, however, Grooms did not return his petition, paving the way for Buda to run without opposition this fall. In Council races, with two to be elected, current Council members John R. Lafferty and Harry B. McCarty are candidates, along with Jason M. Francis.
In Seaman Village, incumbent Mayor David Hughes will face a challenge from David L. Wheeler. With to to be elected, Sally Anderson and Trina Sparks will serve on the Council next term.
In Peebles Village, Wayne Setty is unopposed in his bid for Mayor, and four candidates filed to run for Council, with two to be elected. They include Norman L. Newman, Richard Hoop, Connie Kidder, and Tammy L. Crothers.
Things will be calm this election cycle in Manchester with only one candidate filing to run for Mayor. Incumbent Cody “Skip” Wagner, a former Councilman was appointed last year to assume the Mayor role after Bob Hilterbrand resigned. For Council positions, candidates will be Lori McCartney and Christine Henderson. For the Board of Public Affairs, James R. Bowman III and Daniel Ralston are both running unopposed. Manchester candidates are required to file petitions in May rather than August.
In Winchester, there will be new faces appear in village government at the start of next year. Longtime Mayor Bill Foster is retiring and will be replaced by Ken Shelton or Kevin Carpenter. For Village Council, Joyce A. Porter and Barry Lung both are candidates with two to be elected.
There will also be competition in some township races this fall. In Green Township, Grant D. Jaeger, and Beverly Cox will challenge incumbent Trustee Matthew D. Gray. Longtime Fiscal Officer Joyce Rideout is being challenged by Deb Kay Katz.
In Liberty Township, Justin Ross will return to the Trustees position unopposed and Erica Swearingen will replace Sande Applegate Staggs as Fiscal Officer. Staggs did not pull a petition for re-election and Swearingen will be unopposed.
In Bratton Township, Angie McCoy is running unopposed for re-election to Fiscal Officer. Both Danny Dick and Michael Robinson will challenge one another for the position of Trustee. In Meigs Township, Carla Wesley is running unopposed for another term as Fiscal Officer and Joshua Lloyd is running unopposed as Trustee.
In Monroe Township, both Brenda Emery, Trustee and Angela Wikoff, Fiscal Officer are running unopposed. In Franklin Township, Becky Sanders is running unopposed for a second term as Fiscal Officer and Thomas E. Perdue is running unopposed for another term as Trustee.
In Jefferson Township, Trustee Jack Lewis and Fiscal Officer Ronald Boldman are both running for re-election unopposed. Just down the road in Brush Creek Township, Chuck Taylor will run unopposed for another term as Fiscal Officer and Dustin A. Hayslip will challenge incumbent Trustee L. Steve Hayslip. Randy Lewis picked up a petition but did not file it.
In 2017, voters let go of both incumbent Trustees and there appears to be intense interest for the one seat this election cycle. Those filing to run for the one seat include: John Ruggles, Brad Erwin, Eric Osman, and Jeff Roades.
In Scott Township, longtime Fiscal Officer Charles Newman is retiring from the position. Those vying for the position are: Macy Staggs and Marla Young. In the Trustee race, with one to be elected, Homer F. Holsted is running for re-election. Challengers include: Bob Jones and David Pistole.
In Sprigg Township, Denver Phillips and Floyd Charles Hayslip both filed for the same seat. David Dugan will run unopposed for a second term as Fiscal Officer.
In Tiffin Township, incumbent Trustee Caleb Grooms will face opposition from Tim Chamblin. In the race for Fiscal Officer candidates include: David L. Vogler, Linda Ayres-Louiso and Deatra Pistole. All three are running to replace longtime incumbent Sharon Chenowith.
In Wayne Township, Penny Tolle and Thomas Downing are both unopposed for their township positions. That goes for Winchester Township as well, with both Rae Jean Maddox and Rick Hardin running unopposed for Fiscal Officer and Trustee, respectfully.
For the Adams County/Ohio Valley Schools Board of Education, voters will have a new face on the board. Richard L. Davis will be running with incumbent Charlie Bess. There are two seats to be elected this fall. In the Manchester Local School Board, four candidates filed for two seats. They include: Dave McFarland, Aaron Lockhart, Joel Hanson, and Ashley Grooms.
The list compiled by The Informer is preliminary. Petitions still must be certified by the Adams County Board of Elections in the coming days.
