Mayor races top the ballot

Voters in Portland and Dunkirk will head to the polls with a similar decision topping their ballots: Re-elect a Democrat mayor to a second term or replace him with a Republican challenger.
The mayoral races — incumbent Randy Geesaman against Milo Miller Jr. in Portland and incumbent Dan Watson versus Gene Ritter in Dunkirk — highlight the local choices in Tuesday’s general election. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. as voters also make their decisions for clerk-treasurer and city and town councils and boards.
Geesaman and Miller both dominated their races in the May primary election as they earned more than 70 percent of their party’s votes.
An Indiana University graduate, Geesaman is seeking a second term as Portland’s mayor after defeating two-term incumbent Bruce Hosier in 2011. He had a 33-year career in sales before becoming the city’s clerk-treasurer in 2009.
Miller, a retired contractor, had a long career in county government, serving 10 years as a member of county council and then 24 as a county commissioner. He is also chairman of the Republican Party in Jay County.
Watson is seeking to become the first Dunkirk mayor to be re-elected since 1991 and had previously served two terms on city council. He has been Jay County’s engineer since 1989.
Ritter is a member of the West Jay Community Center board as well as several others and works at plastic storage product and furniture manufacturer Keter. He has never held elective office.
The race is a rematch of the 2011 election, in which Watson defeated Ritter 269-245.
Portland has three other contested races on the ballot, including for clerk-treasurer. Republican incumbent Mickey Scott is seeking a second term as she faces a challenge from Democrat Lori Aker Ferguson.
In the lone head-to-head race for city council in Portland, Republican incumbent Bill Gibson is seeking a fifth term as he takes on Democrat Dave Cramer. Three candidates are running for the two at-large seeks with incumbent Democrat Judy Aker seeking re-election against Republicans Dolphus Stephens and Janet Powers. Incumbent Kip Robinette chose not to run for another term.
Redkey will select three town council members from a field of five, including incumbent Democrats Greg Curme and Ted Friddle. Republicans Doug Stanley and David Dudelston, both former council members, and Larry Sutton are also seeking seats on council. Kyle Champ, a Democrat and current council president, chose not to run for re-election.
The Redkey ballot will also include the following question: Shall the municipally owned utility be returned to the jurisdiction of the utility regulatory commission for approval of rates and charges and of the issuance of stocks, bonds, notes, or other evidence of indebtedness?
Other contested races in Jay County include: Incumbent Republican Krista M. Scholer against independent Amy L. Bell for clerk-treasurer in Pennville and independent incumbent Karen Keen, independents Bruce Smith and Tyler Smith and Democrat Donald M. Shauver for Salamonia Town Board.
Fort Recovery voters will decide whether to renew its 2.5-mill general operating levy, which brings in an estimated $60,000 per year.
Below is a list of candidates, with party affiliation in parentheses, who are running unopposed:

Bryant
Clerk-treasurer
Matthew Gierhart (I)

Town board (three seats)
Gregg Ellenberger (I)
Eddie Keihn (I)
Scott Schoenlein (I)

Dunkirk
Judge
Tommy (Chip) Phillips II (R)

Clerk-treasurer
Phonnie Kesler (D)
(Kesler resigned as
clerk-treasurer in August,
but the deadline
for her to withdraw
from the ballot had
already passed.)
Council – District 1
Jack L. Robbins (D)

Council – District 2
Bryan Jessup (R)

Council – District 3
Jesse Bivens (R)

Council – District 4
Lisa L. Street (D)

Council – At-large
Tom Johnson (D)

Portland
City judge
Donald C. Gillespie (R)

City council – District 2
Mark Hedges (D)

City council – District 3
Michele Brewster (R)

City council – District 4
Don Gillespie (R)

City Council – District 5
Kent McClung (R)

Redkey
Clerk-treasurer
Debbie James (D)