Challenges filed in races for Marion Municipal Court, city council

The Marion County Board of Elections (BOE) certified petitions filed by all four independent candidates for the Nov. 7 general election when it met on Tuesday.

However, challenges have been filed against Marion Municipal Court judge candidate Jennifer Ryan and Marion City Council president candidate Theresa Lubke, which means the four-member board of elections - comprised of Democrats Brandi Downs and Robb Koons and Republicans Todd Anderson and Lynn Zucker - will have to conduct hearings to determine whether they will appear on the general election ballot.

Anderson, chairman of the board of elections, said separate hearings for the challenges to Ryan's and Lubke's candidacies will be scheduled later in June.

Ryan, chief probation officer for the Marion County Common Pleas Court and a former local Republican Party member, collected 118 valid signatures on her petition for candidacy. The board of elections approved Ryan's petition by a 4-0 vote.

Attorney Jack VanBibber filed a challenge to Ryan's candidacy on June 1, according to the document emailed to Star by the board of elections. While board of elections records show that VanBibber is a Marion County resident and is registered to vote, he has no voting record locally.

In his protest, VanBibber states that Ryan's voting record reflects her support for GOP candidates. He further notes that she sought Republican Party appointments to the Marion County Common Pleas Court General Division (2021) and the Marion County Family Court (2022).

Ryan formally resigned from the Marion County Republican Party effective Jan. 22, 2023, informing party Chairman Ken Stiverson about her intention to disaffiliate from the local party. She stated that the "Marion County Republican Party does not share my conservative values and beliefs," citing numerous examples why. Ryan said no party officials contacted her after she informed Stiverson about her decision.

In relation to the challenge to Ryan's candidacy, Marion County Prosecutor Ray Grogan filed a motion with Judge Edwards requesting the appointment of a special prosecutor "to represent and advise the Marion County Board of Elections regarding any matters involving the recently filed challenge concerning the election for Marion Municipal Court."

In requesting the special prosecutor, Grogan cited "a conflict of interest or at least an apparent conflict of interest" because the Marion County Prosecutor "is a legal advisor to the Marion Municipal Court and the Marion County Board of Elections."

In response, Judge Edwards requested that the Ohio Supreme Court appoint a visiting judge to rule on whether a special prosecutor is necessary to advise the board of the elections concerning the challenge to Ryan's candidacy.

In a certificate of assignment dated June 6, 2023, Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy announced that the Ohio Supreme Court has appointed retired Cuyahoga Common Pleas Court Judge Richard J. McMonagle to preside over the case regarding Grogan's request for a special prosecutor.

Lubke, the former executive director of the Marion Family YMCA who now operates her own consulting business, has historically voted as a Democrat, according to board of elections online records. She collected 111 valid signatures on her candidate petition. The board also voted unanimously to certify Lubke's petition.

Marion County Republican Party Central Committee member Matthew K. Pollock has filed a challenge against Lubke's candidacy, submitting documentation to the board of elections on June 5, according to the document emailed to the Star by the board of elections.

In his protest, Pollock cites Lubke's record of voting for Democratic Party candidates and her active support of Democratic candidates. He includes a photograph of Lubke and Marysville attorney Barbara Luke, a Democrat who unsuccessfully ran for the 86th District seat in the Ohio House held by Rep. Tracy Richardson, a Republican. The picture was taken while Luke was campaigning door to door on Oct. 16, 2022, in Marion County was and posted to Luke's campaign Facebook page.

Marion mayoral candidate Bobbie Jo Meachem secured 87 valid signatures and her petition was certified by a 3-1 vote. Zucker was the lone member of the board to vote against Meachem's petition for candidacy.

Zucker initially made a motion to not approve Meachem's petition based on the fact that the "full term" box on two portions of the petition was not checked. She stated that she was opposed to certifying the petition because "there are not enough valid signatures on the sections where the nominating petition portion has been done correctly." However, Zucker's motion died for lack of a second.

Downs made a motion to approve the petition, noting that in her opinion it was not a "substantial compliance issue" because the only term of mayor that is being contested this year is the full term. Anderson and Koons agreed with Downs' opinion and voted with her to certify Meachem's petition.

Meachem's voting record shows that she voted as a Republican in the May 3, 2022, primary election. Prior to that, she voted in the 2020 and 2019 general elections in Marion County. There was no further record of her voting.

Marion Auditor Miranda Meginness collected 112 signatures for her candidate petition. The board voted 4-0 to certify it.

Like Ryan, Meginness is a former Republican Party member. She resigned from the local GOP on July 22, 2022, sending a letter to party leadership. Also like Ryan, Meginness said she never received a response from the party after submitting her resignation letter.

Meginness was appointed by the Republican Party in November 2021 to replace former Marion Auditor Robert Landon, who resigned amid controversy in October 2021. She was elected to the Marion County GOP Central Committee in the May 3, 2022, primary election, but said she did not even vote for herself in that election.

Prior to being appointed in 2021 to serve as auditor by the local GOP, Meginness said she had no party affiliation, noting that she had only voted in general elections. According to the Marion County Board of Elections website, she voted in the 2016 and 2020 November general elections. No party affiliation is listed in her voting record.

Email: ecarter@gannett.com | Twitter: @AndrewACCarter