Two Scioto County commissioners who took office by appointment have now won the backing of voters, securing their seats despite a turbulent period involving a public corruption scandal and controversy surrounding Google’s massive data center development.
Republicans Merit Smith and Will Mault both won their races in Tuesday’s general election, marking the first time voters have elected them to the positions they were originally appointed to fill.
The results come as former Commissioner Bryan Davis is serving a prison sentence in a public corruption case, while the current board continues to field questions about the county’s economic development efforts, the Southern Ohio Port Authority and Google’s Franklin Furnace data center project.
Those controversies have generated plenty of public discussion, but they did not prevent either commissioner from winning election.
Mault Wins by More Than 5,400 Votes
Mault defeated Democratic challenger Abby Spears by a substantial margin.
According to unofficial results from the Scioto County Board of Elections, Mault received 13,039 votes to Spears’ 7,595.
That gave Mault approximately 63% of the votes cast for the two major-party candidates, with a margin of 5,444 votes.
The race also drew write-in votes, including 92 for Thomas Hamilton and 461 unresolved write-ins listed in the unofficial report.
Mault’s victory gives him an elected term after initially joining the board through an appointment.
Smith Defeats Write-In Challenger
Commissioner Merit Smith also secured his first election to the office, defeating write-in challenger Kathryn Cochran.
Smith received 15,463 votes, while Cochran received 955 votes in the unofficial results.
The Board of Elections also reported 1,192 unresolved write-in votes, so Cochran’s total could change as those ballots are reviewed.
Smith’s victory was decisive, giving him an elected term in the position he originally filled by appointment.
Corruption Case and Data Center Questions
The election followed a particularly eventful period in county government.
Former Commissioner Bryan Davis was sentenced to 30 months in prison after pleading guilty to theft in office, receiving stolen property and filing a false or fraudulent tax return in connection with the county’s public corruption investigation.
The case has raised questions about past county economic development dealings and the oversight of public money.
Meanwhile, Google’s data center development in Franklin Furnace has generated debate about water usage, road conditions, construction traffic and whether local workers are receiving the employment opportunities promised during the project’s development.
Smith recently told fellow commissioners that he had personally approached the project’s general contractor, Holder Construction, after receiving complaints about workers arriving from Wisconsin.
According to Smith, the contractor’s representative was unaware of the local hiring agreement and promised to look into the issue.
Commissioners have also discussed changes to Google’s proposed cooling system that could substantially reduce the data center’s water requirements.
The election results do not tell us how individual voters felt about those issues. But they do show that neither the ongoing controversies nor the public attention surrounding them prevented Smith and Mault from securing their seats.
Republicans Dominate Scioto County
The commissioners’ victories were part of a much broader Republican showing in Scioto County.
While Democrats celebrated successes in statewide contests, Scioto County voters favored Republican candidates across the major partisan races.
In the governor’s race, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy received 13,163 votes in Scioto County, compared with 7,741 for Democrat Amy Acton.
Republican Jon Husted carried the county in the U.S. Senate race with 12,944 votes, compared with 7,464 for Democrat Sherrod Brown.
Republican Congressman David Taylor received 13,968 votes, while Democratic challenger Jen Mazzuckelli received 7,220.
State Representative Justin Pizzulli also won a commanding local majority, receiving 14,466 votes to Democrat Collin Docterman’s 7,049.
The Republican advantage extended to county offices.
County Auditor Christopher Blackburn received 13,649 votes, defeating Democrat Tricia Eichenlaub, who received 7,678.
Republican candidates also led locally in races for attorney general, secretary of state, state auditor, state treasurer and the Ohio Supreme Court.
The contrast illustrates how differently Scioto County voted from parts of the state where Democratic candidates found success.
More Than Half of Registered Voters Turn Out
The Scioto County Board of Elections reported 21,782 ballots cast out of 42,744 registered voters.
That represents a turnout of 50.96%.
For Smith and Mault, the election settles an important question about their political futures.
Both entered county government through appointments during a period of significant change.
Now, despite the controversies surrounding county government and the data center development, both have won election to continue serving.
All results remain unofficial until certified by the Board of Elections.