06-02-2025
Candidates and issues: Here's what's on the Stark County primary ballot in May 2025
Voters in Alliance, Canton and Massillon will see a slew of primary contests on the May 6 ballot.
Stark Countians will also vote on a state issue, a countywide issue and local city, village and township issues.
The filing deadline to submit issues and candidate petitions to the county elections board for the May ballot was 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Write-in candidates can still join the race by 4 p.m. Feb. 24. Independent candidates have until 4 p.m. May 5 to file petitions for the primary election.
Here's a look at what's on the ballot May 6 in Stark County.
Edward Elum has served as judge of the Massillon Municipal Court since 1995. He will not run for reelection.
Ohio law mandates that no person can be elected or appointed to any judicial office after turning 70.
Edward Elum: Stark County selects Massillon judge as 2024 Veteran of the Year
Andrea M. Scassa and Dan Funk have filed petitions to run for Elum's open seat. The two are unopposed in their partisan primaries. Scassa will be on the Democratic ballot, and Funk will be on the Republican.
Scassa is a magistrate at Massillon Municipal Court. She was appointed to the position by Elum and Judge Joel C. Fichter in 2020.
Fichter is also up for reelection. He currently would be unopposed.
Scassa has also been law director for the city of Massillon and staff attorney for the Canton Municipal Court as well as serving on Massillon City Council.
Dan Funk is a partner at law firm Baker, Dublikar, Beck, Wiley & Mathews, where he's worked for 25 years. He's also worked as a Canton prosecutor.
Funk most recently ran for judge of a Stark County Common Pleas seat in November, losing to incumbent Natalie Haupt.
Bill Smuckler served more than 30 non-consecutive years as a Canton city councilman. In 2023, Smuckler ran a campaign for Canton mayor. He lost the primary election to William Sherer.
Smuckler, a Democrat, first joined city council as a ward councilman in 1984. Throughout the years, Smuckler has been council president, an at-large council member and majority leader.
He's running for a council member at-large seat this year.
He will face incumbents James O. Babcock and Crystal C. Smith and challenger Joe Cole in the Democratic primary race.
On the Republican side, Carl R. Bliss runs uncontested.
Voters across the county will be asked to approve a five-year, 1.4-mill replacement levy for Children Services.
County officials are asking for the levy in order to fund care and placement of abused, neglected and delinquent children.
The levy would replace the previous levy for Children Services that was passed in 2019 and expires this year. The current levy costs the owner of a $100,000 home $31.36 per year, according to the Stark County auditor.
The replacement levy would cost the owner of a $100,000 home $49 per year in taxes, and would be billed on new home valuations assigned in the reappraisal last year.
The expiring Children Services levy generates $12,680,000. The new levy would generate $18,733,000.
Jerry Coleman, executive director of Stark County Job & Family Services, said child placement costs have jumped significantly, so not passing the levy would be "devastating" to the agency's budget.
Job & Family Services: Replacement levy for Children Services needed to cover skyrocketing placement costs
Canton Ward 1 Councilman Greg Hawk has been absent from the last seven city council meetings due to medical issues.
Hawk originally pulled a nominating petition for reelection, but did not file the required number of signatures with the board of elections by the Wednesday deadline.
Hawk has represented Ward 1 on Canton council since 2002.
He could not be reached Wednesday for comment.
Democrats Errick Freeman and Darren Mayle will face off in a primary to replace him on council.
Daniel Dale Gates runs unopposed in the Republican primary for the seat.
Katie Erchick Gilbert, Canton city prosecutor, wants to become the next judge of Canton Municipal Court.
Erchick Gilbert ran her first campaign for public office in 2024. She lost the general election in the race for judge of Stark County Family Court to Matt Kreitzer.
Erchick Gilbert will run in the Democratic primary in May. She will face Christy Pierson.
Pierson is magistrate of the Canton Municipal Court.
Mark T. Ostrowski is the only candidate in the Republican primary for Canton Municipal Court judge.
They will seek to fill a seat held by Judge Richard Kubilus.
* Incumbent
Alliance
Council president
*Arthur D. Garnes (R)
Treasurer
*Jack Madison (R)
Law director
Andrew F. Selwa (D)
*Caity Weyer (Caitlyn R. Schneider) (R)
Council member, At-large
Jorge I. Mendoza (D)
*Kristopher Bugara (R)
*Jennifer Kiko (R)
*Phillip Gerard Mastroianni (R)
Joshua Smith (R)
Council member, Ward 1
*Sheila K. Cherry (D)
Council member, Ward 2
*Cindy C. King (D)
Council member, Ward 3
Jessica Risaliti (D)
*Ed Lohnes (R)
Logan P. Kelleher (Logan Patrick Tucci) (R)
Council member, Ward 4
*James Edwards (R)
Frank Bolog (R)
Municipal Court judge
*Andrew L. Zumbar (R)
Clerk of the Municipal Court
*MaryAnne Carper (R)
Canton
Council president
Louis P. Giavasis (D)
Roy Scott DePew (R)
Kerry Jane Dougherty (R)
Treasurer
*Kim R. Perez (D)
Council member, At-large
*James O. Babcock (D)
Joe Cole (D)
*Crystal C. Smith (D)
Bill Smuckler (D)
Carl R. Bliss (R)
Council member, Ward 1
Errick Freeman (D)
Darren Mayle (D)
Daniel Dale Gates (R)
Council member, Ward 2
*Brenda Kimbrough (D)
Council member, Ward 3
*Jason Scaglione (D)
Council member, Ward 4
*Chris Smith (D)
Council member, Ward 5
*Robert Fisher Jr. (D)
Charity Rysak (R)
Council member, Ward 6
*Jonathan Cooks (D)
Council member, Ward 7
*John Mariol (D)
Council member, Ward 8
*Richard Sacco (D)
Don R. McVehil (R)
Council member, Ward 9
*Frank Morris (D)
Ryan E. Utterback (R)
Municipal Court judge
Katie Erchick Gilbert (D)
Christy Pierson (D)
Mark T. Ostrowski (R)
Municipal Court judge
Jeremy J. Foltz (D)
Clerk of the Municipal Court
*Phil G. Giavasis (D)
Massillon
Council president
*Mike Slater (R)
Treasurer
Vincent E. Pedro (R)
John Snee (R)
Council member, At-large
*Holly Bryan-Huth (D)
*Sarita Cunningham (R)
Antonio Guillan (R)
Mandwel D. Patterson (R)
Council member, Ward 1
Seth A. Marcum (R)
Council member, Ward 2
*Eric J. Ray (D)
Aaron J. Violand (R)
Council member, Ward 3
*Mike Gregg (R)
Council member, Ward 4
Doremus C. Redvine (D)
Tony M. Townsend (D)
Council member, Ward 5
*Julie Harwig Smith (R)
Council member, Ward 6
*John Paquelet (R)
Municipal Court judge
*Joel C. Fichter (D)
Municipal Court judge
Andrea M. Scassa (D)
Dan Funk (R)
Ohio: Additional general obligation bonds to fund public infrastructure capital improvements.
Children Services: 1.4-mill, five-year replacement levy for child care and placements, commencing in 2025. Would cost owner of a $100,000 home $49 per year; $17.64 in new taxes. Would generate $18,733,000 per year.
Alliance: Local option, Sunday sales, wine, mixed beverages and spirituous liquor at Aeonian Brewing Co., 120
Canton: Local option, Sunday sales, wine, mixed beverages and spirituous liquor at Canton A Plus, Inc., dba A Plus Crab, 4309 Tuscarawas Street W.
Massillon: Local option, Sunday sales, beer, wine, mixed beverages and spirituous liquor at KPRP LLC, 804 Wales Road.
North Canton: 1.5% to 2.0%, income tax increase for general municipal operations, continuing period of time. Effective in 2026.
Wilmot: 1.0% to 1.25%, three-year income tax increase for the general fund. Effective in 2026.
Canton Township: 2.9-mill, five-year renewal road levy, commencing in 2025. Would continue to cost owner of a $100,000 home $50.91 per year. Would continue to generate $892,000 per year.
Jackson Township: Local option, Sunday sales, wine and mixed beverages for Mac's Convenience Stores, LLC doing business as Circle K 5388, 6697 Wales Ave. NW.
Jackson Township: 7.5-mill, five-year renewal fire levy, commencing in 2025. Would continue to cost owner of a $100,000 home $174.33 per year. Would continue to generate $13,134,000 per year.
Lake Township: 1.25-mill, five-year replacement fire levy, commencing in 2025. Would cost owner of a $100,000 home $43.75 per year; $23.59 in new taxes. Would generate $1,419,000 per year.
Perry Township: 2.9-mill, five-year additional road levy, commencing in 2025.
Pike Township: 0.5-mill, five-year additional police levy, commencing in 2025. Would cost owner of a $100,000 home $17.50 in new taxes. Would generate additional $96,000 per year.
Tuscarawas Township: 1.5-mill, five-year renewal road levy, commencing in 2025. Would continue to cost owner of a $100,000 home $30.39 per year. Would continue to generate $221,000 per year.
Tuscarawas Township: 1-mill, five-year renewal fire levy, commencing in 2025. Would continue to cost owner of a $100,000 home $17.19 per year. Would continue to generate $127,000 per year.
Tuscarawas Township: Aggregation, natural gas.
Louisville Public Library: 1-mill, five-year renewal levy, commencing in 2025. Would continue to cost owner of a $100,000 home $16.55 per year. Would continue to generate $364,000 per year.
Mohawk Valley Joint Fire District: 3.5-mill, five-year replacement fire levy, commencing in 2025. Would cost owner of a $100,000 home $122.50 per year; $43.51 in new taxes. Would generate $218,000 per year.
Waynedale Local School District: 2.7-mill, 10-year renewal levy, commencing in 2025.
All candidates and issues must be certified by the Board of Elections.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Here's what's on the Stark County primary ballot in May
