Clermont County residents heard from a number of local candidates running for office during a forum on Oct. 23 at Bethel-Tate High School.

Candidates included Jeff Richards, a Democrat who is running to represent District 66 in the Ohio House of Representatives, Elaine Barnett, a Democrat looking to unseat incumbent Linda Fraley as county auditor, Republican Claire Corcoran and Democrat Rich Perry, who are going head-to-head for Commissioner David Uible’s seat – in March, the Clermont County Board of Elections voted to remove Uible from the May primary ballot because of a discrepancy on his part-petition –, Cory Combs, a Libertarian who’s also running for county auditor, Doug Green, a Republican who’s seeking re-election as statehouse representative for District 66, and Frank LaRose, a Republican who’s running for Secretary of State, and Richard Cordray, a Democrat looking to be the state’s next governor, both sent proxies.

The event was organized by Bethel community organizer Melvin Dean, who has put together candidate forums in the past.

In the lead up to the election, the was intended to give voters an opportunity to hear from the candidates directly.

Richards said that one of the reasons he’s running is because the district has been run by one party for so long.

He also noted that people are afraid of losing their healthcare, are concerned about easy access to high powered fire-arms and high-capacity magazines, and the negative effect that the opioids have had on the area.

“This one party rule has not been very good,” he said.

Barnett shared how her experience as a single-mother inspired her to run for office.

Corcoran, who was raised on a farm in West Chester, is one of eight children. She attended and graduated from St. Ursula Academy, and after college graduation, she worked for 34 years in Job and Family Services.

She called on her experience as a reason she’s ready to take on the job of county commissioner.

“I am not in this for personal gain,” she added.

Perry was raised in Youngstown. He attended and graduated from the local high school, and before he was able to graduate from college, he was drafted into the U.S. Army to fight in the Vietnam War.

Perry went on to study in California and earned his associates degree in aviation, which he has described as his “first love.” He went on to serve in the Air Force Reserve, and more than 10 years ago, at age 60, he retired from ComAir.

He, like Richards, called on voters to support a Democrat for county commissioner.

“We’ve had a lot of Republican rule here; I’m looking out for the little guy, with a special focus on teachers,” he said, “Adding, my job will be to make sure you have all the supplies you need.”

Combs said he chose to run for office because he sees a lot of opportunity for economic growth in the county.

“I want to remove the roadblocks for growth,” he said, noting, “I think [the office] is doing a lousy job at transparency.”

Green said he’s looking for re-election to be a “voice to defend the defenseless.”

Greg Simpson, who spoke on behalf of LaRose, said that when it comes to casting a ballot, “it should be easy to vote, but hard to cheat.”

He also said that LaRose is opposed to same day voter registration, and supports voter IDs.

Cordray’s proxy said that the candidate, who was a leader in the Cash for Clunkers initiative, supports preschool options for everyone in the state.

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By Megan Alley

Sun staff