Candidates go head to head at forum

An election official listed some types of identification voters can use at the polls.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
LORDSTOWN -- Frank Fuda said he would work harder than "any county commissioner has ever worked," while Niki Frenchko said the work Fuda has done in Niles is nothing to brag about.
Fuda, a Democrat and Niles councilman, and the Republican Frenchko are opponents in the Nov. 7 election for the seat being vacated by Trumbull Commissioner James Tsagaris.
Fuda, who has been credited with working the hardest of several Democrats who ran for commissioner in the primary, constantly reminded the 100 or so who attended a candidate forum at Lordstown High School that he has visited residents of many far-flung county regions.
When talking about one of the top issues facing Trumbull County -- failing septic systems -- he mentioned the people he's talked to who stand to lose their life's savings by having to spend thousands for system upgrades.
When he talked about the private water company Aqua Ohio and whether it should be allowed to sell water to areas like Southington Township, he mentioned the Southington residents he has talked to about the problem.
Frenchko's platform
Frenchko, who has worked for the county planning commission and for a private government consulting company, has stressed the concept of "smart growth" throughout her campaign. She said Niles is an example of the worst kind of development -- "cherry picking" the most lucrative areas from nearby communities to achieve its development goals.
A debate between a proponent and opponent of the Ohio State Issue 3 Learn and Earn proposed constitutional amendment kicked off the event. Issue 3 would allow slot machines at seven existing Ohio racetracks and two new locations in Cleveland.
Anthony Caldwell of Yes on Learn and Earn said approving Issue 3 would create 56,000 good-paying jobs in Ohio while providing scholarships of 16.4 million in Trumbull County alone. Its revenue would provide free-ride scholarships to the top 5 percent of students in all school districts in the state, he said. The money could be used only to receive a higher education at Ohio educational institutions.
Issue 3 opponent
However, Issue 3 opponent Rob Walgate of the Ohio Roundtable said the top 5 percent are already receiving scholarship money, and the money that would be awarded to the other 95 percent would be provided only to those students who take certain advanced classes.
He said the proposal would create thousands of "pathological gamblers." As for economic development, Walgate said Hancock County in West Virginia, where Mountaineer Race Track is located, has double the unemployment rate of West Virginia as a whole.
Debating on their 65th District Statehouse race were incumbent Sandra Stabile Harwood, a Democrat from Niles, and former Lordstown Mayor Arno Hill, her Republican challenger.
Rokey Suleman, deputy director of the Trumbull County Board of Elections, reminded voters that they will need to show proof of identification at the polls this election and discussed some of the forms of identification that can be used: driver's license, utility bill, bank statement, paycheck or government pay stub.
runyan@vindy.com