The county elections board split along party lines on the issue.
LISBON — Will Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell excuse himself from breaking a tie in a voter challenge that could harm gubernatorial opponent Ted Strickland?
"I don't know," Myke Clarette, a Blackwell representative, said Thursday.
Blackwell's office didn't return calls, and his campaign spokesman Carlo LoParo said he couldn't comment.
State ethic laws prohibit officials from voting on issues affecting their own interests. Blackwell, a Republican, is lagging behind the Democratic congressman in the polls.
Jennifer Hardin, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Ethics Commission, said, "I don't think this question has been raised before." She said she would have to research the issue.
Blackwell can break the tie that would allow questions about Strickland's voter residency, send the deadlock back to the Columbiana County Board of Elections, or turn it over to legal council in the secretary's office for review.
Hearing hanging
A hearing on the challenge set for Saturday is up in the air until some decision is made, according to local election officials.
The county elections board met to consider whether to investigate a complaint by Jacquelyn S. Long of East Liverpool, who contends that Strickland should be stripped of his right to vote in Columbiana County because he lives in Columbus. Candidates have to be registered voters.
Long is a Democrat who supports Blackwell, and her son, Larry, has volunteered for Blackwell.
Lawyers for Strickland filed a document in support of dismissing the complaint, but the elections board did not even discuss it.
Republican board member Al Fricano began the meeting by making a motion to combine state law on residency, which determines voter registration, and state residency law on paying taxes.
Long contends that because Strickland gets a small tax break in Columbus, that is his primary home.
Atty. Nick Barborak, the assistant county prosecutor who counsels the board, cautioned against combining portions of state law. Fricano and fellow Republican Jerry Ward voted in favor of the motion and Democrats Dennis Johnson and Larry Bowersock voted against it.
Fricano then moved that a lawyer, Heather Heidelbaugh, from Pennsylvania, who is not licensed to practice law in Ohio, be allowed to do so during the investigation.
Barborak cautioned against the move, saying the board should not be deciding who gets to practice law in Ohio. Board members split 2-2, again on party lines.
Move for dismissal
Johnson then moved to dismiss the complaint. Johnson said that county records show Strickland has been regularly voting at a Lisbon address.
But Fricano wanted to make a motion that he said would take priority over Johnson's motion. He didn't say what the motion was for.
Bowersock finally asked, "Why don't we just vote on this instead of having all this B.S.?"
When the board members couldn't agree on what to do, Clarette called Blackwell's office. Clarette said the secretary of state's office told the board to listen to Barborak's advice.
The board then spit on party lines on whether to dismiss the case and Fricano's still undescribed motion.
Heidelbaugh said she represents Mrs. Long.
Atty. Donald J. McTigue of Columbus, who represents Strickland, argued that Long's complaint should be dismissed because it was not made properly and not made on proper forms.
McTigue also contended, as did local elections officials, that a person can pick which of several homes is their primary residence. Heidelbaugh disagreed.
McTigue noted that Strickland's wife, Frances, also voted in Lisbon and her voter status has not been challenged.