Stark County commissioners to run unopposed

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Election

Talk about it

While three Stark County commissioners are facing no opposition as they run for another term, they say it’s still important to vote.

Petitioning for commission seats are Jay Elkin for District 5, Duane “Bucky” Wolf for District 3, and Pete Kuntz for District 1, said Lynn Betlaf, Stark County deputy auditor.

Wolf, who has served 12 years as commissioner, said he is excited to run for his fourth term. There are no new faces running for a commission spot this year, he added.

But commissioners believe voting is crucial for county residents.

Elkin said he has enjoyed serving on the commission for four years, and believes residents should

practice their right to vote because “it’s good and it’s healthy for other people to get involved.”

“It’s the democratic way of finding out whether or not you’re doing the job, or people feel you’re doing the job for them,” Elkin said.

Elkin also thinks having competition would be a good thing, but believes he and the other petitioning commissioners must be doing something right.

“There’s nothing wrong with having other ideas out there,” he said. “It’s apparent to me that people feel we’re doing a good job, or we would be facing some opposition from others.”

An ongoing oil boom brought many changes to the area, he said, adding that commissioners have made the right moves during intense oil-related growth.

“It’s more or less a common sense approach to what’s happening here,” he said.

Kuntz said adapting to the oil boom has been a learning experience for commissioners, and hopes residents will let their voices be heard.

“If (residents) don’t go out and vote, then they can’t complain if something isn’t going right,” Kuntz added.

The deadline to submit petitions for the county commission was 4 p.m. Friday. Election day is June 12.

Tags: stark county commission, duane bucky wolf, jay elkin, pete kuntz, news, election