TRUMBULL COUNTY Elections board puts name back on ballot

The director says her staff was in error by accepting petitions with too many signatures.
By TIM YOVICH
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Trumbull County Board of Elections has put a Niles councilman's name back on the primary ballot, and a Hubbard lawmaker has withdrawn his petitions.
In a reversal to its Feb. 27 decision, the elections board agreed Tuesday that the name of Niles 3rd Ward Councilman Reginald Giancola can appear on the May 8 Democratic primary ballot.
The board had previously rejected Giancola's petitions because they had too many signatures.
Giancola filed petitions with a total 79 signatures, but state law requires that between 25 and 75 signatures be submitted.
After a review, Norma Williams, elections board director, said her staff should not have accepted Giancola's petitions with the 79 signatures.
Williams explained that the staff should have told Giancola that he had too many signatures and allowed him to cross off some signatures.
If the board's original decision had stood, Giancola would have had to file as a write-in candidate.
In 2nd Ward: Niles 2nd Ward Councilman, Michael Lastic, also a Democrat, has filed as a write-in because his petitions were rejected with Giancola's.
Lastic's petitions were thrown out because the number of signatures didn't coincide with the number that he certified he witnessed as being signed.
If Lastic receives 25 write-in votes, his name will appear as a Democrat on the general election ballot.
Newton Falls: Stephen A. Meacham, who was a candidate for an at-large council seat in the Newton Falls nonpartisan election, saw his petitions thrown out because of a lack of sufficient signatures. He has not yet filed to run as a write-in candidate for the seat.
Hubbard protest: Hubbard's 4th Ward Councilman John LaCivita, a Democrat, withdrew his petitions to run in the primary because of a protest filed by his opponent.
The protest was filed by Richard D. Keenan, a Democrat and former Hubbard councilman who is challenging LaCivita.
LaCivita admitted he made a mistake in circulating his petitions, withdrew them, and will now run as an independent in the November general election.
LaCivita said that Gene Flynn, a Hubbard police dispatcher, signed his petitions, but LaCivita didn't witness the signature.
Reasons: Of Keenan's four reasons for the protest, Williams said the only one that was valid was the allegation that LaCivita did not witness all the signatures on the petitions.
The other three reasons were: A blank on a petition wasn't filled out properly, two who signed the petitions lived outside the ward, and another signature was illegible.
LaCivita withdrew his petitions after the elections board set a date to hear Keenan's protest.