March 4, 2004

March 2 primary results

Presidential
Federal, State
County

Kerry wins Ohio, village
Yellow Springs voters asserted their independent spirit in Tuesday’s presidential primary election, as Dennis Kucinich, who visited Yellow Springs two weeks ago, gave John Kerry a run for his money in the village. While Kerry emerged victorious as the Democrats’ choice in Yellow Springs, as he did in Ohio as a whole, Kucinich came in second, ahead of John Edwards and Howard Dean.

In Yellow Springs, Kerry garnered 594 votes, compared with 306 votes for Kucinich and 263 for Edwards. Dean came away with 41 votes, Wesley Clark with 9, Joseph Lieberman, 5, and Lyndon LaRouche Jr., 2.

In Miami Township, outside the village, Kerry also won, gaining 72 votes. Edwards followed with 61 votes and Kucinich received 50. Nine Dean supporters cast their votes in the township and one person voted for Lieberman, while Clark and LaRouche came away empty-handed.

In Greene County, Kerry and Edwards ran a fairly close race, with Kerry winning 6,786 votes and Edwards 4,964. Kucinich came in a very distant third, with 672 votes.

Massachusetts Senator Kerry won 52 percent of the vote statewide. North Carolina Senator Edwards finished in second with 34 percent. U.S. Representative Kucinich won third place with 9 percent, followed by former Vermont governor Dean with 3 percent.

In the Republican primary, 93 village voters cast ballots for President George W. Bush, and 151 Miami Township residents voted for the president.

—Diane Chiddister

Voinovich, Fingerhut win (back to top)
In the race for U.S. Senate in November, Republican incumbent George Voinovich will face Democratic candidate Eric Fingerhut, after both men won their respective primaries on Tuesday.

Voinovich easily carried Yellow Springs and Miami Township, receiving 96 votes in the village and 116 in the township, from voters living outside Yellow Springs. John Mitchel received 17 votes in town and 32 votes in the township. Greene County Republicans also favored Voinovich, 13,299 to 4,141. Voinovich defeated Mitchel statewide, receiving 624,099 votes, or 76.61 percent, while Mitchel got 190,551 votes, or 23.39 percent.

Democrats in all four Yellow Springs precincts chose Fingerhut, who received 566 votes, over Norbert Dennerll Jr., who received 211 votes. Miami Township Democrats living outside the village supported Fingerhut 90 to 39.

In Greene County, Fingerhut received 6,485 votes, compared to Dennerll’s 3,958.

Fingerhut carried the state with 658,393 votes, or 70.83 percent, while Dennerll received 271,194 votes, or 29.17 percent.

Democrat William Eby will challenge Republican incumbent Chris Widener in November to represent the 84th District in the Ohio House. The district includes parts of Greene and Clark Counties and all of Madison County.

Throughout the district and in Yellow Springs and Miami Township, Eby edged out Kevin Stockham. Districtwide, Eby received 4,140 votes, or 50.71 percent, while Stockham received 4,024 votes, or 49.29 percent. Yellow Springs voters chose Eby 363 to 306, while Eby won the township 64 to 61. Stockham did win in Greene County however, with 1,340 votes. Eby had 1,210.

Widener handily defeated challenger Robert Rogers III, 10,891, or 84.95 percent, to 1,930, or 15.05 percent.

Among the few villagers who voted Republican, Widener was favored, 82 to 24. Miami Township voters living outside Yellow Springs also selected Widener, 150 to 12. Widener did just as well throughout Greene County, garnering 3,850, while Rogers had 725.

Ohio Democrats chose Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Nancy A. Fuerst over Judge W. Scott Gwin in the only competitive contest for Ohio Supreme Court. Fuerst received 581,470 votes, or 60.08 percent, while Gwin, a judge on the 5th District Appeals Court, received 386,419 votes, or 39.92 percent.

Fuerst will face Republican Judith Lanzinger of the 6th District Court of Appeals, who was unopposed in the primary.

—Lauren Heaton

County levies approved; Harper and Perales win
(back to top)
Greene County voters decisively approved the two countywide ballots that appeared on Tuesday’s primary ballot.

Final unofficial results from the Greene County Board of Election show that voters approved 67.33 percent to 32.67 percent Issue 6, a 0.8-mill replacement levy from the Greene County Council on Aging. The issue passed 22,438 votes to 10,885.

The five-year levy will generate $2.449 million a year for the Council on Aging, which provides support and services to elderly county residents. The council supports several activities and programs in Yellow Springs.

County voters approved by a similar margin, 62.46 percent to 37.54 percent, Issue 7, a 1-mill replacement levy from Greene County Children Services. The issue was approved 20,634 votes to 12,404.

The five-year levy will produce $3.061 million a year for Children Services, a county agency that provides care, protection and placement of abused, neglected and dependent children.

Yellow Springs and Miami Township voters overwhelmingly supported both levies. Issue 6 was approved 1,160 votes to 118 in the village. Miami Township residents living outside Yellow Springs supported the levy 228 to 71. Yellow Springs voters approved Issue 7 by 1,114 votes to 205, while Miami Township voters living outside the village favored the levy 146 to 87.

In the Greene County Commission races, Republican voters selected incumbent Ralph Harper and Richard Perales. Harper defeated challenger Alan Anderson, an attorney from Xenia who once served as the Village solicitor, 8,907 votes to 7,645, or 53.81 percent to 46.19 percent. Yellow Springs Republicans also supported Harper, 64 votes to 43, while township voters living outside the village preferred Anderson, 87 to 63.

In the fall, Harper will face Democrat Eric Marcus, who was unopposed.

Perales, the mayor of Beavercreek, defeated four other challengers vying to take a seat on the commission being vacated by Reed Madden, who is retiring this year. Perales received 6,152 votes, or 36.24 percent. His closest rival, Robert Dillaplain, garnered 5,376 votes, or 31.67. Fredrick Pumroy had 18.55 of the vote, William Brown received 9.07 percent and Joe Sunday had 4.47.

Dillaplain fared better in Yellow Springs and Miami Township, receiving 30 votes from village Republicans and 69 votes from township Republicans living outside the village. Perales received 29 votes in Yellow Springs and 35 votes in the township.

Perales will face local Democrat Michael Gardner, who was unopposed, in November.

Greene County Sheriff Gene Fischer defeated challenger Terry McCall in the Republican primary 14,087 votes, or 75.67 percent, to 4,530, or 24.33 percent. Fischer is unopposed in the November election. Fischer easily won locally, receiving 108 votes from Yellow Springs Republicans and 153 votes from township Republicans. McCall received 18 votes in the village and 22 in the township.

In the other competitive county race, incumbent Republican Recorder Mary Morris defeated challenger John Anderson 8,260 votes, or 51.09 percent, to 7,907 votes, or 48.91 percent. Morris will face Democratic Tyler Zink, who was unopposed, in November. Morris carried Yellow Springs, 68 votes to 43, but township voters preferred Anderson, 83 to 53.

Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Mary Donovan defeated Urbana attorney Darrell Heckman in the Republican contest for the Ohio 2nd District Court of Appeals. Donovan received 56 percent, or 38,354 votes to 29,712. Donovan will face Democrat Jeffrey Patzer, who was unopposed, in November.

—Robert Mihalek