Yates, McDermott Keep Seats on City Council

With city council wins for both Ted Yates and Bob McDermott and uncontested races for Sam Scaffide, Bill Furey, and Mayor Katherine Procop, things will remain the same atop Twinsburg government.

Ward 3 voters decided to keep Ted Yates in office with 825 votes (65 percent), compared to his challenger, Steve Murphy with 453 votes (35 percent) with all precincts reporting, ccording to the unofficial results from the Summit County Board of Elections.

"This is great," Yates said. "It's nice that the city's recognized the work we've done the past couple years."

Yates, 43, was originally appointed to the Ward 3 council seat in December 2009. Yates said he hoped to keep Twinsburg one of the top places in northeast Ohio to live as well as repeal the .25 percent income tax increase by energizing economic development.

Murphy, 64, has been elected to city council twice before and has served twice on the planning commission as well.

McDermott also retains his spot as the Ward 2 representative with 707 votes (54 percent), holding off challengers Sheila Williams with 342 votes (26 percent) and Daisy Walker with 250 votes (19 percent) with all precincts reporting, according to the unofficial results.

"The results show voter have confidence in me," McDermott said. "They think I will continue to make a difference."

McDermott, 70, has held the Ward 2 council seat for two terms. During his eight years McDermott has served as council president and chairman of the finance committee. McDermott has said he is committed to making Twinsburg the “community of choice” for families, as well as business and other organizations.

Walker, 64, is currently the chairperson of the environmental commission and works with seniors in the community, and also helps with the Twinsburg Farmers Market.

Williams, 54, has served in several un-elected roles for the city including the Kent State University Geauga Campus Advisory Board, Twinsburg Tax Incentive Review Committee, and the Beautification Board.
Ward 3

Mayor stands alone

In the uncontested race for mayor in Twinsburg, Katherine Procop will retain her position. Procop recieved 5,000 votes exactly, according to the unoffical results.

Procop, 61, has held the mayor’s seat in Twinsburg since 1999 and served as Ward 1 councillor from 1991-1999. She has a business curriculum degree from Kent State University and an Ohio Certified Public Manager degree from Cleveland State University’s Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs.

Procop said her first priority in her new term is “job creation through the redevelopment of the Chrysler site.”

Sam Scaffide stays in Ward 1 uncontested

As the uncontested candidate in the Ward 1 City Council race, Sam Scaffide will serve another four years. Scaffide had 907 votes on Tuesday, according to the unofficial results.

Scaffide, 56, will enter his third term as Ward 1 City Councillor.

Scaffide said that for the past eight years his attitude has remained “extremely positive”, even during the toughest times. As the chairman for the finance committee, he hopes to encourage economic development in an effort to reduce the city income tax to two percent.

Bill Furey keeps at-large seat

Bill Furey was another city council candidate who was unnopposed and will keep his seat as at-large councilman. Furey had 4,026 votes Tuesday

Furey, 50, has served in his current position since 2003, including two years as council president.

Furey said in his next term he hopes to repeal the .25 percent income tax while controlling city spending and lowering its debt.