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A crowd of R-2 patrons, teachers, administrators, “I Believe in Schools” committee members and school board candidates watch the election results come in at the Livingston County Courthouse. The $12 million Chillicothe R-2 bond issue, which needed a four-seventh margin of victory, failed with nearly 58 percent of the votes cast against it.

C-T Photo/ Laura Schuler

In an election that saw a voter turnout of just under 34 percent, the proposed $12 million bond issue that would have funded a massive renovation project and construction of a new pre-kindergarten to second grade elementary school in the Chillicothe R-2 district, was soundly defeated Tuesday.

The issue needed a super-majority (a four-seventh margin of victory) to pass, but fell far short with 1,551 votes against it and only 1,153 votes supporting it. The issue failed nearly across the board, losing in every ward and voting precinct except Ward 4. There, 204 voters were in favor of the bond issue, while 198 were against it.

Janet Zion, who was one of three chairmen of the “I Believe in Schools” campaign committee, described the issue’s defeat as disappointing. “We were looking forward to having a new school for the children of Chillicothe,” she said.

As the ballots were counted Tuesday night at the Livingston County Courthouse, it soon became clear the issue would have a difficult road to victory. The first votes counted, the absentee ballots, showed the issue trailing by a margin of 56 to 44 percent. However, when Ward 4’s ballots were tallied, the issue found some much-needed, albeit slim, support. That support, however, soon faded as the results from Ward 3 came in. There, 170 “no” ballots had been cast, compared with only 60 in favor of the issue.

Township Road Issue Fails
By Catherine Stortz Ripley, Constitution-Tribune, Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Chillicothe Township’s first try ever at passing an added road tax was soundly defeated in Tuesday’s election. The proposal garnered support from just 864 voters, compared to 1,219 who voted against the measure. The proposal, placed on the ballot through a petition effort, was to maintain the township’s 66 miles of roads.

Chillicothe Township is one of two townships (the other one is Green Township) that currently has no added road tax. Eleven of the county’s 13 townships have an added road tax ranging from $0.2472 to $0.35 per $100 of assessed valuation.

Township trustee Frank Thompson said he was disappointed by Tuesday’s outcome and said he was uncertain how the proposal’s defeat will affect this year’s already lean budget.

Communities Elect Representation
Constitution-Tribune, Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Several Livingston County communities and other entities voted for representation in Tuesday’s election.

In Chula, voters elected John Graves as mayor with 24 votes. There were two write-in votes cast. Voters also elected Kati Westcott for the alderman at-large position with 25 votes. There was one write-in vote. Jamie Rhodes was voted in as south ward alderman with 12 votes, and Benny Simpson was voted north ward alderman with seven votes. There was one write-in vote for the south ward and seven for the north ward but these votes are not counted because the positions did have declared candidates, according to Livingston County Clerk Kelly Christopher.

In the town of Ludlow, Roddy Bartz, John Coucher and Tim Hein were elected as board members. Bartz received 20 votes, Goucher, 19, and Hein, 28. A fourth candidate, Paige Southwick, received 11 votes.

In the city of Wheeling, voters elected Denise Wayman as city clerk with 39 votes and Jim U. Lowe as west ward councilman with 16 votes. The east ward council seat had no declared candidates but had five write-in votes. Ed Melte had 2 votes, Gary Jenkins, 1, Don Smiley, 1, and Nathen Oesch, 1.

In the village of Mooresville, voters elected all five candidates on the ballot for council members. They are Floyd Thomas, 21 votes, Scott A. Dawkins, 22 votes, Brandon M. Wolf, 22 votes, Larry Wohlgemuth, 21 votes, and Brenda L. Wever, 22 votes.

Voters in the village of Utica elected Jackie Shafer and Richard A. Evans to the board of trustees. Shafer received 25 votes and Evans, 23.

The Livingston Ambulance District No. 3 director position was won by Richard B. Smith, who garnered 140 votes, compared to Donna Preszler’s 87 votes.

Public Water Supply District No. 1 voters elected Tim Hein to the board of directors for Sub District No. 2. He won with 118 votes, compared to Lewis S. McColm’s 82 votes. There were four write-in votes.

Public Water Supply District No. 1 voters elected Brian Thompson to the board of directors for Sub District No. 3. He received 191 votes.

Steady Voter Turnout
By Staff reports, Constitution-Tribune, Tuesday, April 6, 2010

A steady stream of voters showed up at Farmers Electric Cooperative today where residents of Chillicothe and Rich Hill townships were casting ballots. By 11 a.m., there were 200 voters who had cast ballots.

In addition to voting on school board members and a proposed bond issue, voters here were also deciding whether to approve an added road tax to maintain the quality of roads within the township. Through a petition effort signed by Chillicothe Township residents, the township board requested that the measure be placed on today's ballot.