Voters are in a quandary

It happened again. An area officeholder was rumored to be the target of a criminal investigation, but there was no official confirmation of the probe. The officeholder sought re-election and garnered a significant vote.

Fortunately, he was denied the Democratic Party nomination in the May primary when 216 more voters backed his challenger.

Thus, Niles Mayor Ralph Infante will be out of office – his term ends on Dec. 31 – by the time the investigation of government corruption in City Hall reaches the indictment stage.

It would have been disastrous had a majority of the voters in the primary thrown caution to the wind and nominated Infante for another term.

Indeed, during the campaign, challenger Thomas Scarnecchia, a former member of city council, talked about the ongoing investigation, but without official confirmation, his comments were seen as mere speculation.

The result of the May primary election showed just how uncertain voters were about the allegations of government corruption.

Scarnecchia received 1,607 votes (53.6 percent) while Infante garnered 1,391 (46.4 percent).

In the interest of full disclosure, it should be noted that The Vindicator endorsed the incumbent for the Democratic nomination on the grounds that no one in a position of authority would shed any light on what was going on in Niles.

Here’s what the editorial said, in part:

“Absent an official statement from the Ohio Auditor’s Office that the ongoing investigation of Niles city government includes the mayor’s office, residents have no way of judging Ralph Infante’s veracity.

“The mayor, who was first elected in 1991, insists he is not a target of the probe by the auditor’s special investigation unit and, in fact, sought the state’s involvement.”

Lukewarm endorsement

As endorsement editorials go, it was lukewarm at best. But the newspaper had to go with what was on record.

Therein lies the problem of government corruption in the Mahoning Valley. It is so commonplace that it’s difficult to tell fact from fiction.

If only voters had a way of knowing whether an officeholder seeking re-election or a candidate seeking election was the target of a criminal investigation and was on the verge of being indicted. It would save the public the embarrassment of having backed a crook.

Case in point: In the May 6, 2014, Democratic primary, Mahoning County Auditor Michael Sciortino sought the party nomination and received a whopping 16,566 votes. Sciortino was unopposed even though there were rumblings that the Oakhill Renaissance Place criminal-conspiracy noose was tightening around his neck.

Just eight days after winning the primary, the Democratic Party insider was indicted on a slew of criminal charges relating to the Oakhill criminal case. But the arrogant, morally deficient officeholder was unfazed. He stayed in the race despite the black cloud hanging over his head – and shrugged off The Vindicator’s editorial appeal that he resign. Youngstown Mayor and former county commissioner John A. McNally and Youngstown Atty. Martin Yavorcik also were indicted in the Oakhill case.

But Sciortino’s refusal to do the right thing was too much for the thoughtful, law-abiding voters of Mahoning County.

They punished him in the November general election by supporting Republican Ralph Meacham, a political newcomer. Meacham raked in 33,839 votes, while Sciortino captured 31,487.

He was forced to resign prior to his term in office ending after other criminal charges were filed against him with regard to his conduct in office.

But while the end result in both Mahoning County and the city of Niles is a good one, the fact that Sciortino and Infante were on the ballot and received sizeable support has left a bitter taste in the mouths of many.

Over the years, law enforcement agencies investigating government corruption in the Valley have been reluctant to influence the outcome of an election by rushing to indict officeholders or candidates.

That may be good policy, but it doesn’t do much to improve the reputation of the region. When someone like Sciortino gets more than 16,000 votes, it’s a black eye we can ill afford.