2023 General Election: Unofficial results show Smith-Daulton winning Leesburg mayor's race; Greenfield council race too close to call

With three contested city and village races across Highland County, unofficial results from the Nov. 7 general election show a possible change in leadership in the Village of Leesburg, while incumbents retained their seats in other races.

Highland County had a 43.7-percent voter turnout overall, according to the Highland County Board of Elections. There are 30 absentee ballots and 133 provisional ballots outstanding.

Unofficial results show Rita J. Smith-Daulton winning the Leesburg Village Mayor’s race by a slim margin, with 156 votes, compared to current mayor Shawn C. Priest, who received 124, unofficially.

Smith-Daulton is a member of the Leesburg Village Council, where she is currently serving as council president. Priest has served one term as mayor of Leesburg, as she was previously a member of Leesburg’s Village Council as well as a longtime Fairfield Local Schools employee.

In the Village of Greenfield, incumbent council members Brenda Losey and Mary Ellen McMurry look to retain their seats, but the third seat is too close to call. Losey led the way with 445 votes, unofficially, and McMurry received 413.

Losey is active in the Greenfield community and has served on village council for multiple terms, as she is currently the vice chairwoman and the chair of the ordinance committee. McMurry is a lifelong Greenfield resident and has worked as a math professor and as a materials manager at Hobart. She currently serves as finance committee chair.

For the third open spot on council, Carlos Ooten has 325 votes and Donald R. Davy has 319, unofficially. (Current council member Jessalyn Hunter did not file for election.)

Davy formerly served as a Village of Highland council member. Ooten is a small business owner in Greenfield.

For the Lynchburg Village Mayor’s race, unofficially James Burton will remain mayor for another term, as he defeated Terry Burden by a margin of 266-196, unofficially.

Burton is the current mayor of Lynchburg and a former Lynchburg council member. Burden formerly served as mayor and did not seek reelection in 2019.

In uncontested races, William (Chad) Randolph was elected Judge of Hillsboro Municipal Court, after winning the Republican primary race over Kathryn Hapner in May. He received 7,781 complimentary votes, as 28 of Highland County’s 31 precincts vote for that office.

In March 2022, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine appointed Randolph as Municipal Court judge, following the retirement of former Judge David McKenna. Randolph is a Highland County native and a graduate of Lynchburg-Clay High School, Wilmington College and the University of Cincinnati College of Law.

Prior to being appointed judge, Randolph worked as an assistant prosecuting attorney in Highland and Clinton counties, including 26 years in Clinton County. He also served as Legal Services director for the Clinton County Department of Job and Family Services; president of the Clinton County Bar Association; and counsel for the Highland County Water Company.

Incumbent Hillsboro mayor Justin Harsha was elected to a second term, after previously defeating Herb Day in the May 2 primary. Harsha received 1,304 votes, unofficially.

Prior to being elected mayor in November 2019, Harsha served six years as a member of Hillsboro City Council. He is also the sixth generation to own his family’s business, Harsha Monument Company, in Hillsboro.

In the Village of Highland, Jeremy Kibbey was reelected mayor (34 votes, unofficially), while Village of Mowrystown mayor Jim Allen was also reelected (69 votes, unofficially).  

Dawson Barreras was elected Hillsboro city auditor, as he has been serving in that role since being appointed to the position in June. He received an unofficial 1,245 votes.

Barreras won the primary race over Patty Day, who was appointed as city auditor in November 2022 and resigned from the position May 19, effective June 2. On June 5, Harsha selected Barreras as acting city auditor, and Highland County Republican Central Committee’s Hillsboro representatives made that appointment official June 8.

Barreras also previously served a short stint as Hillsboro city treasurer. A lifelong Hillsboro resident, is a graduate of Hillsboro High School.

Also elected was Hillsboro City Law Director Randalyn Worley, who replaced Fred Beery upon his resignation in February 2022. She received 1,209 complimentary votes, unofficially.

Worley was admitted to the bar in Ohio in 2009. Originally from Ironton, she received her Juris Doctor from Phoenix School of Law in Arizona and a bachelor of arts from The Ohio State University. Prior to being appointed city law director, Worley worked as assistant prosecuting attorney in Adams County.

In the Village of Lynchburg, incumbent council member Marty Bailey (320 unofficial votes) and new candidate Chris Toller (235 unofficial votes) were both elected to office. Current council member Ken Eaglin did not take out petitions.

Current Leesburg Village Council member Kenny Worley was also reelected, with 321 unofficial votes. Although there were two open seats, he was the only candidate on the ballot due to Smith-Daulton being up for reelection and instead running for mayor.

Similarly, current Mowrystown Village Council member Rachel Byrd was reelected, as she was the only candidate listed for two open seats. She received 63 votes, unofficially.