PICKAWAY COUNTY, Ohio — A person vying to be mayor of a village in Pickaway County will have his candidacy contested.
Jason West, who filed his petition to run for mayor of the small village of 3,100 wrote that he lives at 178 Rosewood Loop SE when he filed to run for the office on August 9.
However, a citizen by the name of William Thompson has filed a challenge to West’s candidacy, alleging that the wannabe candidate has not lived in the village for at least 12 months, which is required under Ohio law to run for village mayor.
The proceeding filed by Thompson is called a “candidacy protest” and was filed with the Pickaway County Board of Elections on Thursday.
“Under ORC 3513.263, the members of the board of elections will hold a scheduled hearing where both the protester and the candidate will be given an opportunity to address the issues raised in the protest,” wrote Matthew Nicklas, director of the Board. “The board will then determine the merit of the protest and the validity of the petition. Such determination is final.”
The hearing is scheduled to be held on September 5, at 2:30 p.m.
The Guardian has reviewed documents that show West resigned from village council in July 2022, writing that he was “planning to move full time to Arizona and Washington for the next 18-24 months.” While property records show West has owned the home, its alleged that he rented the house to a local firefighter while he was absent from the village and living elsewhere for the last several months.
Voter registration history shows West did not vote locally in the 2022 election in Pickaway County.