DISTRICT 3 was supposed to be the Republican Party’s breakthrough in the city council election on Tuesday.
And then the AFL-CIO got involved.
A $100,000 campaign from the state AFL-CIO to place its members on local government boards in Ohio — township trustees and city councils — made a difference in at least two local races on Tuesday.
Theresa Gadus, a Toledo Public Schools instructor of the deaf and the endorsed Democrat in District 3 to replace the retiring Peter Ujvagi, appears to have won a come-from-behind victory, defeating Glen Cook.
As of now, Ms. Gadus has a 20-vote lead, with 42 provisional ballots left to count. It would take a miracle for those provisional votes to go enough in Mr. Cook’s favor to change the outcome.
Mr. Cook came in first in the September primary in a three-way race, setting up expectations of a Republican being elected to council for the first time since 2009. With Councilman Tom Waniewski term-limited out, at-large Councilman Rob Ludeman will be the sole surviving Republican, leaving Independent Sandy Spang and 10 Democrats.
Ms. Gadus, who grew up in East Toledo and has been an instructor in the east side schools for a decade, was the beneficiary of an effort by the AFL-CIO to put its members in elective office. Ohio’s AFL-CIO spent about $100,000 to help 51 union member candidates across the state by sending direct mail and posting digital ads to likely voters.
Tim Burga, the Ohio AFL-CIO president, said the goal was “policy outcomes.” He said 32 of the 51 were successful.
“The whole purpose is to support candidates who believe in collective bargaining, who believe the economy is not some mystical thing but rules put in place by those we elect. Those rules can create living wage jobs, project labor agreements, collective bargaining laws, fight for fair trade,” Mr. Burga said.
The executive director of the AFL-CIO of Greater Northwest Ohio is Kevin Dalton, who is also the president of Ms. Gadus’ union, the Toledo Federation of Teachers.
The other district that the AFL-CIO’s program made a difference in was Maumee City Council on behalf of appointed incumbent Scott Noonan, the AFL-CIO labor engagement liaison for the United Way of Greater Toledo. Mr. Noonan placed 6th in the September primary but finished as the third of three winners in the election on Tuesday.
A total of 2,444 votes were cast in District 3, which includes all of East Toledo and the Old South End as far west as the Burroughs school zone. That compares with more than 6,000 voters in each of the two previous District 3 council elections, 2011 and 2015. Also fewer than 2003, 2006, a special election, and 2007.
In a low-turnout district, large glossy postcards and social media ads made a difference.
Mr. Cook’s endorsers were former mayors Carty Finkbeiner and Donna Owens, and former Councilman Mike Craig. ‘Nuff said.
It didn’t help that some of Mr. Cook’s ideas were a little unusual. He thought that one of the problems with District 3 was not enough God.
He put forth the idea that East Toledo has too many absentee landlords and proposed an ordinance that only people living within 50 miles of Toledo could own a rental unit in the district.
All that said, Mr. Cook is well-known in both sides of the district and came close to winning the seat four years earlier.
He also had the backing of the Lucas County Republican Party. This was the first Toledo City Council election since 2009 that the party was not split into bitterly opposing camps.
The GOP had endorsed candidates in five of the six council district races on the general election ballot, which was more than was seen in 2011 or 2015.
The Republican Party didn’t come away from the election empty-handed. GOP Toledo Municipal Judge Josh Lanzinger was re-elected — by a whisker — against Democrat Tom Puffenberger.
If Ms. Gadus’ lead holds, much of her election victory can be chalked up to the effort made on her behalf by the AFL-CIO.
Tom Troy is associate editor of The Blade and member of The Blade Editorial Board.
First Published November 8, 2019, 5:00 a.m.
