WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE, Ohio — Fayette County voters turned out at 54.5 percent in the Nov. 3 general election, narrowly renewing the Miami Trace school levy by 61 votes while backing Republicans at the top of the ticket, according to unofficial results from the Fayette County Board of Elections and the Ohio Secretary of State reported by the Scioto Valley Guardian.
The county reported 9,213 ballots cast out of 16,900 registered voters, with all 25 precincts reporting, according to unofficial results from the Ohio Secretary of State’s office reported by the Scioto Valley Guardian. Five absentee ballots and 153 provisional ballots remained outstanding in that count, the Guardian reported.
The closest local question was the Miami Trace Local School District renewal levy, which Fayette County voters approved with 2,532 votes, or 50.6 percent, in favor and 2,471, or 49.4 percent, against, as all 18 precincts in the district reported, according to unofficial results from the Fayette County Board of Elections reported by the Scioto Valley Guardian. A second school tax went the other way: Washington Court House City Schools’ income tax renewal failed by 44 votes, 1,936 to 1,892, according to the Guardian’s county reporting.
Essential-services levies fared better. The Fayette County EMS renewal passed 5,571 to 2,493, according to the Scioto Valley Guardian, alongside a Tri-County Joint Fire District additional levy and a Sterling Joint Ambulance District renewal the Guardian reported as passing.
At the top of the ballot, Fayette County backed Republican Vivek Ramaswamy for governor over Democrat Amy Acton, 66.1 percent to 29.4 percent, with Libertarian Don Kissick taking 4.4 percent, out of 9,053 votes cast, according to unofficial results from the Ohio Secretary of State reported by the Scioto Valley Guardian. In the U.S. Senate race for the unexpired term, Fayette County favored Republican Jon Husted over Democrat Sherrod Brown, 67.0 percent to 27.4 percent, the Guardian reported. Statewide, Acton and Brown were leading and were ultimately projected as winners — a result at odds with the county’s own preferences.
The split showed up in Congress as well. Democrat Don Leonard upset Republican Rep. Mike Carey district-wide in Ohio’s 15th District, which includes all of Fayette County, on the strength of Franklin County, according to the Scioto Valley Guardian — even though Carey carried Fayette County itself with 6,357 votes, or 70.2 percent, to Leonard’s 2,390, or 26.4 percent, in the county’s returns reported by the Guardian. In the Ohio Senate’s 17th District, the Guardian projected Republican Shane Wilkin had won re-election, with Wilkin leading Democrat Brian Deer 72.8 percent to 27.2 percent in Fayette County.
None of these results is final. They are unofficial until the Fayette County Board of Elections completes its official canvass — including reviewing the outstanding provisional ballots — and certifies its results, and the Secretary of State certifies statewide. Under Ohio law as outlined by Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office, county boards must complete the official canvass and certify no later than 21 days after Election Day, which is Nov. 24 for the Nov. 3 election. With the Miami Trace levy decided by 61 votes and the Washington Court House school tax by 44, the canvass and the 153 provisional ballots will be watched closely in Fayette County.
Photo: Antony-22, CC BY-SA 4.0