Hayes Nelson to face Tinlin in Portage County commissioners race in November

A Democrat who once headed the county's NAACP will face a Republican with a law enforcement background in November in the Portage County commissioners race. The longtime auditor's hand-picked successor lost Tuesday's Republican Primary vote. And voter turnout was low, but most of the ballots that were cast came from Republicans.

More: Candidates file for election: Primaries expected in Portage auditor, commissioner races

Geraldine Hayes Nelson won the Democratic primary for a seat on the Portage County Board of Commissioners, with 4,839 votes to 2,878 for challenger Tim Moon. On the Republican side, Mike Tinlin, former Aurora police chief, defeated Deerfield Trustee Ed Dean, 7,549 to 4,942. The winner of the November vote will replace Democrat Vicki Kline, who is not seeking re-election.

In the auditor's race, Matt Kelly, a former member of Mogadore Village Council, defeated two Republican opponents, with 4,313 votes, compared to 4,099 for Kristy Elliott and 2,135 for Brian Ames. And 1,488 votes were cast for Deborah Mann, who withdrew from the race in early April, too late for her name to be removed from the ballot.

More: Three Republicans hope to replace Esposito as Portage County auditor. One has her endorsement.

Kelly will face Brad Cromes, Portage County treasurer, who ran unopposed in the Democratic Primary. The winner of the contest will succeed longtime Auditor Janet Esposito who, after seven terms in office, decided not to seek an eighth. Esposito had backed Elliott because of her accounting experience, but Esposito suspects Elliott didn't benefit from the announcement because it was made late in the campaign.

"He's not a bad guy, he's friendly," Esposito said of Kelly. "He's a politician, but that's OK, so am I."

Hayes Nelson said she believed voters agreed that "it's time for a change" and that she would focus on serving the people of Portage County and bringing in good job opportunities.

She pointed out that her experience at Kent State University would be "very transferable" to the role of a commissioner, because her job involved administration and human resources. Her job overseeing the Upward Bound program had her working with school districts in six counties, and she oversaw $1.4 million in grants.

Tinlin, meanwhile, said he plans to draw on his experience in the safety forces and will work for the people, who he said are tired of not knowing what's going on in county government or where their money is going. He said he hopes to hold regular coffee gatherings where citizens would be able to talk to him.

"I can't wait to work with those people and get us back on the right track," he said. "I think we've been on the wrong track."

Both candidates say they don't want the race to become a battle between law enforcement and the Black community.

Hayes Nelson said she sees the role of police as vital, and said when she led the Portage County NAACP, she had conversations with law enforcement and visited inmates at the Portage County Jail.

"We've had so much division," she said. "As American people, we need to sit down and work together."

Tinlin said he has met Hayes Nelson and likes and respects her.

"I've worked in the trenches and seen the good and the bad," he said. "I've never had a problem with the NAACP. They're there for a purpose and I'm OK with that."

Kelly said he would meet with other county auditors to learn their "best practices" and "lean heavily" on the team already in place in Esposito's office. He said he had two good opponents in the primary, and would remain committed to serving with integrity "no matter what happens."

"I really look forward to working for the people in Portage County," he said.

Cromes said he would build on the strengths Esposito has had, such as being open to the community, but also would seek to bring in innovative programs to make sure property assessments are "fair and equitable" and weights and measurements are accurate.

"I want to maintain the positive aspects of the office and deliver positive service to our residents," he said.

Reporter Diane Smith can be reached at 330-298-1139 or dsmith@recordpub.com.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Portage voters set races for commissioner, auditor races