HANCOCK COUNTY — With the heads of both major parties in Hancock County leaving the positions, local Republicans and Democrats both must choose new chairs this week — and the Democrats are still seeking candidates.
County party officials serve four-year terms and are elected by precinct-level representatives. Any registered member of a party who lives in the county can run for the positions and must win the votes of a majority of voting members to be elected.
The Republican county party election will take place Saturday, March 6 at the H.J. Ricks Centre for the Arts in Greenfield, beginning at 9:30 a.m. State party rules mandate that the vote must be held in person, said party chairwoman Janice Silvey, who is not seeking re-election.
The local Republican Party has one candidate for chairman, current vice chair Steve Leonard. Nominations for vice chair, secretary and treasurer will be made from the floor during the event.
Leonard, who has been the vice chair of the local Republicans for eight years, said it was not a hard decision to declare his candidacy for the top job. Leonard has been active in the party for decades, serving as a precinct committeeman since 1984. Recently, he was elected as the new trustee of Center Township following the retirement of Ron Horning, who died in February.
Leonard said he hopes to continue Silvey’s legacy in the position.
“I wanted to keep the good team we’ve got going in place, for the most part,” he said.
Over the next few years, Leonard said he hopes the Republican Party will maintain its strong position in Hancock County, where Republicans currently occupy all local elected offices. He said he also hopes to promote the party’s message to community members with the hope of involving younger people in local politics.
The local Democratic Party will also hold a vote on Saturday, though it plans to do so virtually; the party will hold its meeting over the videoconferencing app Zoom at 10 a.m. Current party chair Randy Johnson said no candidates have yet committed to running for the officer positions, but he is taking a “pretty relaxed” approach to the vote and hopes to get nominations during the event.
The Democrats also need to select a party chair, vice chair, secretary and treasurer. Any registered Hancock County Democrat is eligible to run for the positions, but they must be nominated by a voting member at the meeting.
Anyone interested in running for the Democratic Party positions should contact Johnson at 615-828-0466.
If a county party chair is not chosen during the meeting, Johnson said, the Democratic chair for the county’s congressional district will likely call another meeting to attempt to choose a candidate after the district chair elections the following week.
Johnson said votes for party officials are usually held by secret ballot, but will not be this year because the party is holding its meeting online.
“It’s a different era,” he said.