MARION, OH (MARION COUNTY NOW) – Following two hearings to reconsider candidate petitions for seats on the board of county commissioners, the field is now set for the March 19 primary election in Marion County.

The Marion County Board of Elections voted to approve petitions submitted by county commission candidates Jason Schaber and Tim Mooney, both Republicans, during reconsideration hearings held Jan. 9. The BOE had previously rejected Schaber’s and Mooney’s petitions because they had the incorrect commencement dates for the offices they’re seeking written on the petitions.

Schaber, who represents the 3rd Ward on Marion City Council, and former sheriff’s deputy Kevin Davidson are running against Commissioner Kerr Murray in the March 19 primary election. Murray is serving in his second term as a county commissioner. He was first elected to the office in 2016, defeating Democrat Dan Russell. He won reelection to the office in 2020.

Mooney, who currently serves on the Claridon Township Board of Trustees, is running against Commissioner Andy Appelfeller in the primary election. Appelfeller is serving in his sixth term as a county commissioner. He was first elected to the office in 2000.

State Rep. Tracy Richardson is facing a challenge in the March 19 primary election for the Republican Party nomination in the race for the 86th District seat in the Ohio House of Representatives. Union County resident Wezlynn Davis, a current member of the Jerome Township Board of Trustees, is also seeking the GOP nomination in the 86th House District.

Democratic Party candidate Lesley Verbus of Marysville is running without opposition in the primary election. She is a local business owner who operates two tech companies in the Marysville area. Verbus ran for Paris Township fiscal officer in the 2023 general election, but lost that bid for elected office.

Richardson, who lives in Marysville, is serving her third full term in the Ohio House.

The 86th Ohio House District includes all of Union County as well as the City of Marion, the Village of Prospect, and Marion, Pleasant, and Prospect townships in Marion County.

Only two candidates have filed to run for the 87th District seat in the Ohio House of Representatives. Incumbent Riordan McClain, a Republican, and Craig Swartz, a Democrat, are both running without opposition in the March 19 primary election. Both candidates reside in Upper Sandusky.

McClain is serving his third full term in the Ohio House after being appointed to fill an unexpired term in January 2018.

Swartz is a former Upper Sandusky City Council member and has previously run for seats in the Ohio Senate and Ohio House.

Barring the entry of an independent candidate into the race for the 87th Ohio House District seat, McClain and Swartz will face each other in the Nov. 5 general election.

The 87th Ohio House District includes most of Marion County and all of Crawford, Morrow, and Wyandot counties.

State Sen. Bill Reineke, a Republican, is running without opposition in the March 19 primary election. Reineke represents the 26th Ohio Senate District, which includes Marion, Union, Crawford, Morrow, Sandusky, Seneca, and Wyandot counties.

Reineke, who resides in Tiffin, is in his first term in the state senate after serving three terms in the Ohio House.

Union County resident Mohamud Jama is the lone Democratic Party candidate running in the primary election.

Barring the entry of an independent candidate into the race for the 26th Ohio Senate District seat, Reineke and Jama will face each other in the Nov. 5 general election.

Following is a list of all partisan candidates who will be part the March 19 primary election in Marion County:

  • Todd Anderson (REP) – Marion County Common Pleas Court Judge, General Division (Term commences Jan. 1, 2025)
  • Matthew P. Frericks (REP) – Marion County Common Pleas Court Judge, General Division (Term commences Jan. 2, 2025)
  • Rhonda Burggraf (REP) – Marion County Common Pleas Court, Family Division (Unexpired term ending Feb. 8, 2027)
  • Jessica Wallace (REP) – Marion County Clerk of Courts
  • Ray Grogan (REP) – Marion County Prosecuting Attorney
  • Matt Bayles (REP) – Marion County Sheriff
  • Kevin Davidson (REP) – Marion County Board of Commissioners (Term commencing Jan. 2, 2025)
  • Jason Schaber (REP) – Marion County Board of Commissioners (Term commencing Jan. 2, 2025)
  • Kerr Murray (REP) – Marion County Board of Commissioners (Term commencing Jan. 2, 2025)
  • Andy Appelfeller (REP) – Marion County Board of Commissioners (Term commencing Jan. 3, 2025)
  • Tim Mooney (REP) – Marion County Board of Commissioners (Term commencing Jan. 3, 2025)
  • Leslie A. Longstreth (REP) – Marion County Recorder
  • Linda A. Davis (DEM) – Marion County Treasurer
  • Karen Spencer (DEM) – Marion County Treasurer
  • Brandy A. Gandert (REP) – Marion County Treasurer
  • Bradley K. Irons (REP) – Marion County Engineer
  • Bill Reineke (REP) – Ohio State Senate 26th District
  • Mohamud Jama (DEM) – Ohio State Senate 26th District
  • Tracy Richardson (REP) – Ohio House 86th District
  • Wezlynn Davis (REP) – Ohio House 86th District
  • Lesley Verbus (DEM) – Ohio House 86th District
  • Zachary McNutt (REP) – 26th District State Central Committee (Man)
  • Fred Vogel (REP) – 26th District State Central Committee (Man)
  • Brian M. Roberts (REP) – 26th District State Central Committee (Man)
  • Justin C. Smith (REP) – 26th District State Central Committee (Man)
  • Michael Coughlin (REP) – 26th District State Central Committee (Man)
  • Lisa Cooper (REP) – 26th District State Central Committee (Woman)
  • Susan Platt (REP) – 26th District State Central Committee (Woman)

Independent candidates wishing to run for office in 2024 must file petitions by 4 p.m. on March 18.

The deadline to register to vote in the March 19 primary election is Feb. 20.