McDonald’s candidacy for the March 19 Republican primary was certified Jan. 2 by the Board of Elections. She has been a Democrat for years, but planned to run as a Republican against Democratic incumbent county commissioner Debbie Lieberman.
If the race moves forward in that fashion, both McDonald and Lieberman would be unopposed in March’s party primaries, and would advance to face each other in the November general election.
But Thursday’s protest claims McDonald is not qualified to be on the Republican primary ballot for multiple reasons.
The protest says as of Thursday, McDonald was still an elected member of the Montgomery County Democratic Party Central Committee, dating to the May 2022 election. The protest says according to Ohio law, McDonald would have had to file a “declaration of intent” at least 30 days before filing her declaration of candidacy for the March ballot. The protest says she did not do so.
The protest filing also includes a copy of an email dated the morning of Thursday, Jan. 4, purporting to be from McDonald to Al-Hamdani, with McDonald telling the party chairman she is resigning from the position of Democratic precinct captain “effective November 27, 2023.”
The protest says McDonald’s resignation has not been accepted by the Democratic Party chair (Al-Hamdani) “because it is deceptive and a fraud on the people in her precinct which elected her. It also defeats the purpose of Ohio Revised Code 3513.191, which is to provide notice of intent to change parties before an elected official runs for office under a different party affiliation.”
McDonald said she was disappointed by the news of the protest, feeling that it centers on a technicality. The former mayor was a Democrat for many years but said she felt unsupported by the local Democratic Party.
“With all the successes that Trotwood has had as a result of my being a mayor who believed in non-partisanship and working across party lines to get things done, I actually was able to achieve that,” she said. “And because of that, the way that I work, over the last eight years, the Democratic Party has ostracized me and done everything they could do to be a thorn in my flesh.”
She said she wants to run for commission because she feels her leadership experience in Trotwood and her ability to work with others could help move the county forward.
“I’m still one who believes we should all win,” she said on Friday. “Montgomery is successful when we all win. In Trotwood, I led the charge in saying failure is not an option. I want to bring that same spirit to the county.”
McDonald was unseated from the Trotwood mayor position by Yvette Page in the November election, where she had been seeking her third term as mayor.
“Elections are specific and must be followed,” Al-Hamdani said Thursday. “Just two months ago, the former mayor was running as a Democrat and lost the seat she held for eight years. Now, she failed to follow election laws property, which is necessary to switch parties. Small mistakes can cause big problems.”
Montgomery County Republican Party spokesperson Wes Farno called the protest a “desperate attempt by the Liebermans and the Montgomery County Democratic Party” to eliminate “stiff competition.”
Asked about the GOP comment Friday, Debbie Lieberman said, “There’s no desperation here. Election laws are there for a reason. This is one they missed.”
The protest by Al-Hamdani and Blauser requests a prompt hearing by the Board of Elections on McDonald’s candidacy.
A hearing date had not been finalized as of Friday afternoon, according to Montgomery County Board of Elections director Jeff Rezabek.
The primary election is March 19.
