Democrats to select replacements

Officials are trying to resolve a fight over the 32nd Senate seat.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Successors to state Sens. Marc Dann and Charlie Wilson, who are leaving the legislative body for higher offices, will be selected early next month.
It's likely that Anthony Trevena of Guilford Lake, who's worked for Gov.-elect Ted Strickland since 2002 and is a close adviser to him, will be selected by the Democratic Senate Caucus to replace Wilson, of St. Clairsville, in the 30th District, Democrats say.
The leading contenders to replace Dann, of Liberty, in the 32nd District, Democrats say, are state Rep. Sandra Stabile Harwood of Niles, D-65th, and Capri Cafaro, who has unsuccessfully run for Congress in two districts.
Also, the names of a few Valley residents are being tossed around by local politicians as potentially going to work for Democrats recently elected to statewide office because of Strickland's close ties to the area.
Strickland's cabinet
Besides naming John Haseley of Athens as his chief of staff when his gubernatorial term begins in January, Strickland hasn't selected anyone for his Cabinet. Haseley will serve as director of Strickland's transition team, and Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman is the team's chairman.
"I'm going to do my d-------- to get someone from the Mahoning Valley in the Strickland Cabinet," said state Sen. Robert F. Hagan of Youngstown, D-33rd. Term-limited as a state Senate member, Hagan returns to the Ohio House, representing the 60th District, in January.
Among the Valley names being mentioned is Mahoning County Treasurer John Reardon.
Reardon, of Boardman, said he's not looking for a position with Strickland's administration and hasn't been approached about one but would be interested if the right post were offered.
Reardon said he was asked a few months ago by Strickland campaign officials if he would be interested in serving on the transition team, and he told them yes. Reardon said he hasn't heard from the campaign since Election Day about serving on the team but hopes he is formally asked.
State Rep. Kenneth A. Carano of Austintown, D-59th, who will begin serving his last two-year term in the Ohio House in January because of term limits, says he's interested in leaving early for the right political position, whether it be in Mahoning County or on the state level.
The governor's Cabinet includes 23 department heads and thousands of appointments.
Not leaving
Some local elected officials say they are staying put even if offered state jobs.
Mahoning County Auditor Michael Sciortino of Austintown, the county's coordinator for the successful Jennifer Brunner for secretary of state campaign, said he isn't leaving his job to work for her.
But Sciortino, the former county board of elections director and an attorney, said he's been asked to serve as legal counsel for the Ohio Association of Election Officials. Sciortino is a former president of the organization.
If he took the job, Sciortino said he would work as the association's legal go-between with the secretary of state's office. Sciortino said he must first determine if the job would conflict with his duties as county auditor -- he doesn't believe it would -- and needs specific information about the position's responsibilities before accepting it.
Mahoning County Commissioner Anthony Traficanti recently said he's had no discussions with Wilson about joining his congressional staff even though the House member-elect says they have.
If Traficanti, who says he's perfectly content serving as commissioner, were to leave, it would set off a series of moves that could have at least three politicians leaving their posts to replace one another.
Replacements
The replacements for Dann, the attorney general-elect, and Wilson will be determined during the week of Dec. 4. As the most senior member of the caucus, Hagan will set the specific date for the meeting and expects that to be Dec. 5.
The incoming Democratic Senate Caucus, and not the one leaving at the end of the year, will vote on the replacements, Hagan said. Dann and Wilson will not have votes, leaving 10 people -- including state Sen.-elect John Boccieri, a New Middletown Democrat replacing Hagan -- to determine the replacements.
During the next few weeks, the party chairmen and women, with the assistance of their executive committees, in the two Senate districts will recommend candidates to the incoming Democratic Senate Caucus, Hagan and Boccieri said.
While others are interested in Wilson's Senate seat, Trevena is a shoo-in for the job, said Hagan, Boccieri and Carano.
Others who are interested in the job, Hagan and Boccieri say, include Jason Wilson, Charlie's son, and state Reps. John Domenick of Smithfield, D-95th, and Allen Sayre of Dover, D-96th.
The 30th District includes Columbiana, Jefferson, Harrison, Belmont counties and most of Tuscarawas County.
It's not as clear in the 32nd-District race. The district takes in all of Trumbull and Ashtabula counties.
It comes down to Harwood and Cafaro, party officials said.
"The party's trying to work out a deal to have Capri take Harwood's seat in the House, but I don't know if that's going to happen," Boccieri said.
Cafaro
Though Hagan doesn't have a vote, he is supporting Cafaro for Dann's position even though she's failed to win congressional races in the May Democratic primary and in the November 2004 general election.
The two most important qualities for someone filling a state legislative vacancy are raising money and being electable, Hagan said. Cafaro, the member of one of the Valley's wealthiest families, clearly fills the first requirement, Hagan said. As an appointed incumbent, Cafaro would be electable, he added.
Also, her father, J.J. Cafaro, is "actively lobbying on her behalf. He's passed out a lot of money to the caucus and to individual members," Hagan said. "Everyone knows money is the mother's milk of politics."
Once the incoming caucus selects the two replacements, the current 10 members along with the two new appointments will appoint its leaders, Boccieri said.
There is a battle for minority leader between state Sens. Kimberly Zurz of Green and Teresa Fedor of Toledo.
Boccieri said he wants to serve as assistant minority leader, the No. 2 position for Democrats in the Senate, and is "in a strong position to do so." Hagan and Carano agree that Boccieri, who is close to Strickland, is expected to get elected assistant minority leader.
skolnick@vindy.com