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Board of Elections Rejects 5 Candidate Petitions and 2 Ballot Issues for the November General Election Due to Incorrect Petition Filings

Geauga County Board of Elections (BOE) - Special Meeting August 14, 2025

Meeting Info - Special meeting on August 14, 2025, at 9:00 am in BOE Conference Room at 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Suite 004 (Basement), Chardon, OH, 44024. Attendance was in-person only, which is a departure from the BOE’s typical practice of offering both in-person and virtual public attendance. An agenda was provided in advance. Reviewer Note: See the discussion of virtual access further below.

Public Comment Policy - The Board of Elections typically responds to questions about agenda items throughout the course of their meetings. Those exchanges are documented below as they occur.

Attendance: Present were:

• Board Chair - Dennis Pavella

• Board Member - Janet Carson

• Board Member - Richard Piraino (departed at 11:47 am)

• Board Member - Joan Windnagel

• Deputy Director - Nora McGinnis

• Office Administrator - Scott Daisher

• Director - Michelle Lane was absent

County Representatives: In person, Zach McLeod, Information Security Manager, Automatic Data Processing (ADP).

Ohio Secretary of State Representatives: None

Public: In person, four members of the public, a reporter from the Geauga Maple Leaf and this Observer.

Call to Order - The meeting was called to order at 9:06 am.

Minutes - Minutes for July 17, 2025 were approved without edits or discussion.

Payment of Bills - Invoices totaling $59,601 were approved. Mrs. McGinnis highlighted key expenses related to the recent office move, including costs for advertising, office supplies with the new office address, and the installation of panic buttons. Expenses approved included the following:

• $47,977 for an OPEX mail opening and sorting machine

• $2,496 to ADP for Office 365 license

• $2,474 for office supplies

• $2,281 for ladders needed for the new storage room (one item to be returned)

• $1,488 to ADP for Meraki switch & router

• $995 to Guardian for panic button installation and six-month monitoring

• $655 for advertising of office relocation

• $593 for new office equipment

• $360 for moving equipment to new location

• $282 for mileage reimbursement for recent Northeast Regional meeting

Report from ADP/Auditor’s Office - Mr. McLeod reported the following regarding ongoing work by ADP in BOE’s space in the Geauga County Office Building (GCOB):

• Fire Suppression System - Two quotes for fire suppression systems have been submitted to the County Commissioners for review. He did not have the final dollar amounts on hand but promised to obtain them. According to his understanding, the quotes had been with the Commissioners for a couple of weeks. The quotes cover two phases: 1) Fire suppression for the programming room, large storage room, and ballot room, and 2) The rest of the office/work areas.

• Server Room Progress - The server room project is nearly complete, with only final sealing work remaining.

• Fire Suppression Fluid Safety - Information about the suppression agent:

• If released without fire, the fluid is non-hazardous to breathe.

• If released in the presence of fire, it becomes hazardous after about five minutes. This means staff would have approximately five minutes to evacuate safely.

• Evacuation Planning - Mr. McLeod reported that Mr. Glen Vernick, Maintenance Director who oversees the GCOB, indicated BOE staff should exit through the back of the building in case of emergency. Board members expressed concern that no formal evacuation plan or markings were in place and stressed the urgency of establishing and practicing evacuation drills, especially before October when in-person election activity increases.

• Outstanding Issues:

  • Water-based fire suppression is still active over some equipment, raising concerns.

  • Details regarding the coverage of chemicals used in fire suppression in sensitive areas like the storage and ballot rooms.

Live Streaming of Board Meeting - The Board discussed the technical setup and policy implications of live-streaming meetings from their new building. The conversation involved logistical issues, responsibilities for funding, and transparency concerns. The board was in favor of live-streaming and potentially recording meetings for greater transparency, but needs to finalize technical logistics, funding responsibility, and determine a recording retention policy.

Petition Certification - 2025 General Election Ballot -  Candidate petitions were audited by BOE staff and those with filing issues were forwarded to Board Counsel Kristen Rine at the Geauga County Prosecutor’s Office for review. The Board considered Ms. Rine’s recommendations during their review of these candidate petitions, and took the following actions:

• John Adams — Huntsburg Township Trustee — Rejected (insufficient number of signatures and declaration dated after signatures).

• Todd Albright — Chardon Board of Education — Rejected (nomination form completed incorrectly; not enough valid signatures).

• Tim Charvat — Newbury Township Trustee — Rejected (declaration dated after signatures on all petitions).

• Chris Hare — Russell Township Trustee — Approved (two valid petitions counted; one defective petition ignored; still had enough valid signatures).

• Kyle Kaplan — Village of Middlefield Council — Approved (circulator address incorrect but circulator was registered in-county; accepted per counsel).

• Bryan Kostura — Russell Township Trustee — Approved (used a multi-candidate form provided by BOE; board accepted). Mr. Kostura was in attendance and provided background on the matter under consideration.

• Joseph Mazzurco — Chester Township Trustee — Rejected (declaration dated after petition signatures).

• Brandon Reed — Parkman Township Trustee — Approved (one petition missing circulator signature; still had enough valid signatures).

• Cooper Sherman — Claridon Township Trustee — Rejected (declaration dated after petition signatures).

• Benjamin Timmons — Kenston School Board — Approved (one unsigned petition discarded; still had enough valid signatures).

It was noted that candidates can file an appeal of the decision with the Board but they are not obligated to consider the appeal. 

The Board voted 3 to 1 to accept the remaining 78 candidate petitions. Mrs. Carson abstained due to the lack of resolution to a question she raised on the proper interpretation of candidate’s manual instructions regarding the use of multiple original signed declarations of candidacy vs. copies of one original declaration of candidacy. During the discussion, the Board reached out to Ms. Rine for input on this question but voted 3 to 1 not to ask for an official interpretation on the question from the Prosecutor’s Office as requested by Mrs. Carson.

Observer Comment: Candidates whose petitions are rejected are not permitted to run as write-in candidates for the same office.

Recognize Questions and Issues - 2025 General Election Ballot -  Issue submissions were reviewed by staff. The following ballot issue petitions were specifically reviewed by the Board:

• Thompson Township B - Sunday Sales - Cellar’s Key Winery: Rejected (44 valid signatures; needed 50; one part had a printed, not cursive, circulator signature). Ms. Schaffer, representative from Cellars Key Winery, was in attendance and explained her efforts to obtain the needed signatures. The Board encouraged her to try again for the May 2026 election and provided guidance on how to check the validity of the signatures obtained.

• Hambden Township C - Sunday Sales - Hambden Township Convenience Mart: Rejected (establishment name and selection of on/off-premises sales missing).

The Board approved the remaining 17 issues. Two Hambden filings were withdrawn and re-filed as substitutes before certification.

Campaign Finance - BOE staff reported that three entities failed to submit their required semi-annual campaign finance reports for the reporting period. Notices had been sent, but no filings were received. The three entities were as follows:

1. Friends of Metzenbaum Center 

2. County Democratic Women’s Caucus 

3. Friends of Tim Lennon 

The Board was informed that the Ohio Elections Commission announced it will not accept referrals between September 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026, due to reorganization and backlog of cases. This created uncertainty on how to proceed, since a referral would likely not be processed in the near term. Previous notices were sent to entity treasurers by regular mail, not certified mail. Board members questioned whether this was sufficient, noting problems with postal delivery delays. Some argued for sending certified or registered mail to ensure proof of notice and possibly prompt compliance. Discussion arose about whether notices should go to the treasurer only, or also to the candidate (where applicable). For committees without an active candidate, only the treasurer or entity address was used. Suggestions were made to send notices to both treasurer and candidate when relevant. Members expressed frustration with the Elections Commission backlog, which can leave compliance issues unresolved for 12–18 months. The Board debated adopting stronger follow-up measures (certified mail, multiple addresses) to improve compliance before escalating cases.

Ballot Quantities - Mrs. McGinnis recommended ordering 70,000 ballots for the upcoming November General Election. This number was based on the total number of registered voters in Geauga County plus a 5% buffer to ensure adequate supply. She stated that she reached out to three vendors for a quote but had only received one reply. The urgency of finalizing numbers was stressed due to printing deadlines leading into the busy fall election cycle. The Board reviewed staff’s recommendation of 70,000 ballots for November’s election, weighed cost vs. risk of shortage, and leaned toward proceeding with that number. A special meeting will be required to approve the ballot quantity, ballot vendor and final cost. 

Public Test Date - Staff proposed September 19th or September 24th, 2025 as possible dates for the public test of voting equipment. These dates were chosen based on ballot availability and the time needed to complete test deck preparation. The Board emphasized the importance of having the test well before early voting begins, to ensure any issues with ballots or machines can be identified and corrected. The Board requested that staff confirm ballot readiness and report back before finalizing the date. The Board agreed to the dates of September 19 or 24, 2025, dependent on ballot readiness, with staff to provide confirmation closer to the dates. Observer Note: Early in-person voting begins on October 7, 2025.

Appoint Poll Workers - Staff confirmed that a list of recommended poll workers had been prepared. The list covered appointments for the September 16, 2025, through September 15, 2026, term. Additional poll workers could be added later as needed, ensuring flexibility. The Board approved the staff-recommended list of poll workers for the coming year, while ensuring they would review the list via email and allow for updates if necessary.

Deputy Director’s Report - Mrs. McGinnis reported:

• The issue of the GCOB parking lot capacity during early in-person voting will be discussed at the August 19, 2025 County Commissioners meeting. Reviewer Note: The idea of having GCOB overflow parking at the new Youth Center was discussed, but no decision regarding the parking lot was made at the August 19, 2025 County Commissioners Meeting. The LWVG Observer Report for that meeting is available here. 

• Review of efforts to communicate the BOE’s move to the public, including signs and ads in newspapers. Observer Note: The LWVG posted information about the BOE move on its website and Facebook page.

• An update to the poll worker manual is in progress.

• The Northeast Ohio regional meeting held at Kingwood Gardens in Mansfield was helpful.

• The potential need for precinct changes. Mrs. Carson noted that Bainbridge D precinct voter count exceeded the maximum number of voters in a precinct of 1,400 as laid out in the Secretary of State Directive 2025-08. It was agreed that the tight November election timeline, made more constrained by the recent BOE office move, made the addition of a precinct for the upcoming election difficult. The preference was to consider this for the May 2026 election. 

• The use of a recent $10,000 security grant was discussed. Mr. Daisher discussed the potential acquisition of the software KNOWiNK that would facilitate centralized management and programming updates of poll pads.

At this time in the meeting, the fire suppression system quotes were obtained from ADP and discussed by the Board. The quote to install the system for three specific rooms - programming room, ballot room and the large storage area - was $187,276. An additional quote to cover the remaining of the BOE office space was approximately $636,000. 

Public Comment: This Observer inquired about the number of poll workers needed for the November 4th general election. Mrs. McGinnis said between 250 to 300. 

The meeting adjourned at 10:45 am.

Next Meeting: The regular Board meeting scheduled for August 21, 2025 was canceled. The next regular Board meeting is scheduled for September 18, 2025 at 9:00 am. Reviewer Note: A special meeting was later scheduled for August 28, 2025 at 9:30 am. 

Observer: Carol Benton

Editor: Gail Roussey

Reviewer: Sarah McGlone

Date Submitted: August 19, 2025

The League of Women Voters of Geauga is a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. They do not support or oppose individual candidates or parties. Learn more about the LWVG at www.lwvgeauga.org.