By Anna DeWine
XENIA — In the final countdown to Election Day, there are a few things residents should remember.
Voters can still vote early. Located at 551 Ledbetter Road, the Board of Elections is currently open for early voting from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, 1-5 p.m. on Sunday and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Monday.
Polls will be open on Election Day between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.
For those who want to verify their precincts and polling locations, check out the Voter Lookup Tool on the Greene County Board of Elections website.
Completed absentee ballots must be postmarked by Monday, Nov. 7, and arrive at the Board of Elections within 10 days of Election Day.
Candidates
Greene County residents will have seven contested races on their ballots, along with the presidential race and many uncontested races.
Running for US Senate is second-term incumbent Rob Portman (R) and former governor Ted Strickland (D).
Challenging incumbent Mike Turner (R) for US House of Representatives, 10th District, is Robert Klepinger (D). Turner is former mayor of Dayton.
With two justice positions open, the Ohio Supreme Court has two contested races. Justice Judith A. Lanzinger has reached mandatory retirement age, leaving one seat available. Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge John O’Donnell is challenging Ohio First District Court of Appeals Judge Pat Fischer. Justice Paul Pfeifer’s seat is open as he, too, has reached mandatory retirement age. Ohio Eleventh District Court of Appeals Judge Cynthia Rice is challenging Ohio First District Court of Appeals Judge Pat DeWine, Greene County native, for the spot.
Matthew Kirk (D) of Yellow Springs is running against Robert Hackett (R) of London in the State Senate race for 10th District.
Challenging Rick Perales (R) of Beavercreek for the 73rd District State Representative seat is Brian Housh (D) of Yellow Springs.
Barb Niemeyer (D) is up against incumbent Bill Dean (R) for the 74th District State Representative race.
Running for the State Board of Education is Nick Owens (R) and Braydon Bevens (D).
The following are the uncontested races on the ballot, all Republicans: Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice – Maureen O’Connor; Court of Appeals Judge – Michael Hall; Court of Appeals Judge – Michael Tucker; Court of Appeals Judge – Mary E. Donovan; Greene County Court of Common Pleas – Michael Buckwalter; Greene County Court of Common Pleas – Adolfo A. Tornichio; Greene County Commissioner – Bob Glaser; Greene County Commissioner – Thomas Koogler; Greene County Prosecutor – Stephen Haller; Greene County Clerk of Courts – Terri Mazur; Greene County Sheriff – Gene Fischer; Greene County Recorder – Eric Sears; Greene County Treasurer – Dick Gould; Greene County Engineer – Robert Geyer; Greene County Coroner – Kevin Sharrett.
Renewal issues
Fourteen renewal levies are up for vote this year.
Many of these renewals are location-specific, but two of these are county-wide: a .75-mill renewal for permanent improvements for Greene County Vocational Schools over a continuing period of time and a .5-mill renewal for current expenses for Greene Memorial Hospital over five years.
New levy money
Eight more issues are on the ballot that are not renewal levies. The additional levies, replacements, and bond issues are as follows:
Beavercreek City Charter Amendment – Direct Election of Mayor – Beavercreek voters will decide whether or not to directly elect their next mayor. Currently, the highest-vote-getter running for city council automatically becomes mayor.
Fairborn City School District Bond Issue and Tax Levy – 2.7 mills/37 years, Additional – .25 mill/23 years – Voting for Issue 19 will support the construction of new primary and intermediate school buildings.
Xenia Community City School District Bond Issue – 3.9 mills/37 years – The approval of Issue 21 will allow for the construction of a new middle school and high school complex.
Jefferson Township Additional – Current Expenses – .9 mill/5 years
Bath Township Additional – Streets, Roads, Bridges – 2.2 mills/5 years
Spring Valley Township/Village – Additional – Current Expenses – 1 mill/5 years
Beavercreek Township Additional – Police – .9 mill/continuing period of time
Sugarcreek Township Replacement – Fire/EMS – 2.9 mills/continuing period of time
For more Election Day and ballot information, visit the Greene County Board of Elections website at www.co.greene.oh.us/boe/.
Editor’s note: The Xenia Daily Gazette, Fairborn Daily Herald and Beavercreek News-Current will be working on Election Night updating our Facebook, Twitter and websites with results as they come in. We will also have news stories as results are available as of press time.