May 6, 2022
Ohio

Crawford voters re-elect Ley, support Parks measure

By A.J. Kaufman - For Galion Inquirer | May 4, 2022 | www.galioninquirer.com

GALION – On a stormy Tuesday, Crawford County voters chose Tim Ley to maintain his seat on the Board of Commissioners. With no Democrats or Independents on the ballot, the incumbent defeated two Republican opponents and will officially begin his second term in January. Ley received about half of more than 5,500 votes cast.

“I want to thank the voters in Crawford and Galion for their support and trust in me to watch over their funds and taxpayer money,” Ley said. “I am just so very humbled and blessed.”

Like his competitors, Ley openly ran in opposition to industrial wind farm development, while simultaneously promoting Crawford as the first county in Ohio to restrict their development. Senate Bill 52’s passage now enables county commissioners to make decisions about wind farm development, instead of township trustees or the Ohio Power Siting Board.

Another goal of Ley’s is ensuring that homes surrounding the Crawford County Landfill on U.S. Route 30 between Bucyrus and Galion have access to safe drinking water.

The 62-year-old Bucyrus native served 36 years with the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office before retiring in 2018 and entering politics. He has three children and two grandchildren.

Ley now continues in the commissioner’s role, alongside Larry Schmidt and Doug Weisenauer.

Other candidates vying for the job were Corey Orewiler and Dale Wolfe, each of whom earned well over 1,000 votes.

Wolfe, who finished second, is a Wyandot County native who recently retired as a part-time security officer at the Crawford County Courthouse, after his policing career concluded in 2005.

Orewiler is a Wynford High School graduate who worked at Timken Company for more than three decades. The 53-year-old with no government background said he decided to run after attending a meeting about the aforementioned Senate Bill.

Ley, Orewiler, and Wolfe all believe rural Ohio is not the place for industrial wind development.

On another measure, the Crawford Parks District levy renewal easily passed with over 4,500 “yes” votes out of nearly 7,000 cast.

The money will aid current and future financial needs of the Crawford Park District, including operating expenses, capital improvements, property acquisitions, and more.

At the federal level across the county, Rep. Jim Jordan ran unopposed in the 4th Congressional District primary, while Republican J.D. Vance and Democrat Tim Ryan secured their party’s U.S. Senate nominations.

In the race for governor, incumbent Republican Mike DeWine sailed to an easy primary win in a three-way contest; former Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley thumped ex-Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley in the Democratic primary.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2022/05/06/crawford-voters-re-elect-ley-support-parks-measure/