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Unemployed man challenging Commissioner Dan Polivka in Democratic primary
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
Neither David Cook nor Dan Polivka seems able to explain why Cook is running in the March 15 Democratic primary against three-term incumbent Polivka for county commissioner.
Cook, 70, is running for the fourth time for commissioner, despite having no previous experience in government and no specific claim of skills to offer from his work experience.
Cook is on Social Security disability and retirement and hasn’t had a job for more than 20 years. In his younger days in Texas, he says he ran a gas station and a restaurant and worked as a security guard.
Polivka is chairman of the Trumbull County Democratic Party.
For someone to run against the chairman of his own party is unusual, but Cook declined to say what reasons he has to oppose Polivka for commissioner except that he’s spoken with thousands of people while campaigning, and “They don’t trust him.”
Cook had the most success in his first campaign for commissioner in 2002, when he nearly defeated incumbent James Tsagaris in the Democratic primary. Cook says he’s running againt Polivka “to have a more-open and honest office.”
Cook also lost Democratic primaries in 2004 to Joe Angelo, in 2008 to Paul Heltzel and in 2010 to Frank Fuda. He lost to Tom Letson for state representative in the Democratic primary in 2012.
Polivka says he doesn’t know what Cook’s motivations are for running against him, but he said it gives Polivka the chance to talk about his accomplishments – “turning the county around to be more business friendly,” finding a solution to a mold problem at the county health department in 2004, getting a camping option called a “yurt” at Mosquito Lake State Park and encouraging people to shop local to boost sales-tax revenue.
Lakeview Board of Education member Mary Williams of Cortland is unopposed in the March 15 Republican primary for the commissioner seat now occupied by Polivka.