The Hancock Republican Party held a “Meet the Candidates” event during their First Friday Luncheon Club on February 6th.
The guests were the nine candidates running for the two open slots on the Hancock County Commissioners. As the headline read in the Findlay Courier, “Candidate views similar”.
It really isn’t important to name the candidates here since they were so interchangeable. But that’s what happens when a party dominates the local scene. Instead of new ideas and wanting to get enthusiastic, you get BLAH.
The participants were given two minutes to introduce themselves and then one minute to answer a series of questions posed from the audience.
Some the questions were:
If they would meet new Findlay Mayor Tony Iriti’s pledge to nurture cooperation between the city and the county, and how they would do it.
If they would put the quarter-percent sales tax increase, used to fund the county’s criminal justice system, back on the ballot if necessary or if they would simply impose it.
How they would attract well-paying jobs to the county.
But like true modern politicians none of them really answered the questions.
One candidate, during the intro part of the event, even told people to read his bio in a pamphlet his campaign had printed up.
On the question about how they would attract well-paying jobs to the county, no one mentioned a specific plan. They only mentioned working closely with the Chamber of Commerce.
“Well, duh….” comes to mind.
On the issue of the recent sales tax hike to fund the sheriff’s office, some said they would wait and see if it needs to be renewed while a couple pledged to put it on the ballot if needed.
Left unanswered, like how to bring more jobs to the county (which by the way the county really doesn’t need what with consistently having one of the lowest unemployment rates in the state), the participants also didn’t answer questions not asked, like how would they improve the county. What would they do about the lack of affordable housing? How would they protect farmland from the annexation fever of the city of Findlay? What are their feelings about the recent efforts to zone various township land? What are their views on the need for strong environmental regulations?
The meet and greet reminded me of interviewing 16 year olds for a fast food job and each one saying they are “people person”. Each are just as qualified but none stand out from the crowd.
YAWN….
Originally posted on the blog “Hancock County Politics Unfiltered”
