By DAVE SCHULTZ
Republican voters in Zanesville Saturday gathered for a town convention and selected two incumbents and one newcomer as their Town Council nominees on the November ballot.
John Schuhmacher and John Blacksten, currently members of the council, will be joined by Issac Zent on the GOP slate. The other incumbent on the three-member board is Barb O’Connor, a Democrat, who is her party’s only candidate.
There were seven candidates in the town convention and 47 people showed up to cast a ballot. Schuhmacher, who has been on the council for 20 years or so, had 27 votes as did Zent. Blacksten was right behind them at 26.
The other three candidates were Thomas Tracey, Ron Hartman, Dennis Kammerer, and Matthew Fry. Fry was not present.
Schuhmacher is recently retired from his postion at Project Design and Piping and is a member of Local 166 of the Plumbers and Pipefitters Union. He said he was confident that he would be nominated.
“I saw a lot of friendly faces in the room,” he said.
Zent, who tied Schuhmacher for the most votes, has lived in Zanesville a short time but he said he was encouraged to run for the council by several people. He is employed by Geiger Excavating. It is his first time seeking a political office.
“I feel I can work with anybody,” he said after the vote. “I can work with these guys” — gesturing to Schuhmacher and Blacksten, — and with everyone in the town.”
Blacksten has been on the council since January, having been selected to fill the vacancy when former member Dave Frick resigned. He is the town’s former maintenance supervisor and is also a former Marine, retiring with the rank of sergeant major.
The convention was scheduled for 1 p.m., but the doors in the room in the Zanesville Tower Life Center church remained open until 1:30 p.m. to allow for latecomers. After the doors were closed, each candidate were given two minutes to introduce themselves and ask for support. Then, individuals walked up to the ballot area and checked off three names.
The votes were counted and the winners named to end the event.
Reggie Hayes moderated the convention and he and Carol Brown counted the votes. Zach Rodgers and Sandy Garcia, the chairman and the vice chairman of the Wells County GOP’s central committee, were also on hand.
daves@news-banner.com
