BUCYRUS — Crawford County residents are expected to elect more than the next president of the United States come Nov. 8.

There are four candidates running for two county commissioner seats, two candidates are running for one county recorder seat and several city and township issues are on the general election ballot.

County commissioner

Incumbent Doug Weisenauer (R) has served on the county commissioners board for two terms and is seeking reelection. He is being challenged by Daniel Wirebaugh (D).

Weisenauer, a lifelong resident of Bucyrus, said his experience in public service is his best qualification for the job. Prior to being elected as one of the Crawford County commissioners, Weisenauer served one four-year term as a Lykens Township trustee.

“And before that I had 26 years as a business owner,” he said. “I have a strong work ethic and I’m not afraid to show up for work to do what needs to be done.”

He identified the county’s most pertinent issue as a lack of funding, an issue that has plagued much of the county during his tenure.

“The state has taken away local government funding, that’s something the state has decreased. And it affects the county, townships, libraries, cities. We’re forced to find other revenue sources,” Weisenauer said.

One way he has worked to bring more revenue in from the state government, he said, is by lobbying the state legislatures, creating county-wide tax levies and, as a last resort, he said, taxing the citizens.

One such tax was passed in 2010: the criminal justice levy. It was determined the levy needed to pass in order to keep the sheriff’s office afloat after absorbing state funding cuts.

Weisenauer’s opponent, Wirebaugh, sees the commissioner’s seat as the next step to making a difference for his hometown. The former manager for Swan Products LLC believes bringing back the manufacturing economy to Crawford County should be the priority as a commissioner.

“Just last week I started working with economic development and we’re taking inventory on some of the vacant properties. We’re trying to attract manufacturing businesses,” Wirebaugh said.

Wirebaugh grew up in Bucyrus and is part of Bucyrus High School’s class of 1998. He said he’s seen when the county’s economy thrived — but he’s also aware of the drug epidemic spreading nationally.

When he lost his second manufacturing job in the mid-2000s, he and his wife became certified as drug and alcohol counselors and founded Affinity Health Works, a rehabilitation center in Bucyrus.

Wirebaugh said his opponent does not have a track record of “getting things done” and “throws out a lot of excuses.” If he is elected, he said he would bring new ideas and think outside of the box.

“I’ve always tried to fix things. I see what needed done and then got the right tools. We have to look over the situation and make sure we have the right tools and equipment. I’m following what I’ve always done,” he said.

Candidate Mo Ressallat won in the primaries in March when he ran against Galion YMCA Director Terry J. Gribble. The commissioner’s seat opened when current commissioner Steve Reinhard (R) decided to run for the 87th Ohio House of Representatives seat in the Ohio Legislature.

Reinhard lost in the primary to Wes Goodman.

Crawford County Courts custodian Jeff Teynor, who has not declared a party, appears on the county’s ballot as Ressallat’s challenger.

To learn more about Ressallat’s bid for the commissioner’s seat, click here.

Teynor could not immediately be reached for comment.

County recorder

Dawn Schnabel (D) and Julie Wells (R) are competing for votes for the Crawford County Recorder chair after current recorder Karen J. Scott chose not to run for re-election.

Issues and levies

Four local liquor options will appear on Crawford County’s ballot, two of which are located in Galion. Each issue seeks to make legal the sale of wine and mixed beverages and spiritous liquor on Sunday. They are:

  • WABO LLC, doing business as Ehrhart’s at 108 North Lane Street in Bucyrus. The permit would allow the business to sell liquor between 10 a.m. and midnight on Sunday.
  • Kork & Kap Inc., doing business as Kork & Kap at 135 East Main Street in Crestline. The permit would allow the business to sell liquor between 10 a.m. and midnight on Sunday.
  • El Torasco Mexican Restaurantat 214 Portland Way North in Galion. The permit would allow the business to sell liquor between 11 a.m. and midnight on Sunday.
  • Automated Petroleum Inc., doing business as Jen Cor Food Store/Marathon. The permit would allow the business to sell liquor between 10 a.m. and midnight on Sunday.

A number of townships within Crawford County are seeking renewal tax levies. One levy is a replacement levy, increasing it by .55 mill in Chatfield Township.

According to the county ballot, the levy will be “for the purpose of fire protection at a race not exceeding 1.8 mills for each one dollar of valuation, which amounts to $0.18 for each $100 of valuation, for five years.

Two school districts are seeking renewal levies. Tri-Rivers Joint Vocational School District seeks a five-year 1.3 mills levy to benefit Marion, Crawford, Delaware, Hardin, Morrow, Union and Wyandot counties for current operating expenses.