Miller and Strouse win seats on Holmes County Board of Commissioners
MILLERSBURG − In true Holmes County fashion, it was Miller edging Yoder in one race, while Eric Strouse edged a strong field of five candidates for the other race for Holmes County commissioners.
Joe Miller narrowly retained his seat for a fifth term as commissioner, edging Ervin Yoder 1,801 to 1,699 votes.
Strouse, meanwhile, bested the field of five candidates seeking the seat being vacated by the retiring Ray Eyler on the Holmes County Board of Commissioners in the Primary Election held on Tuesday.
Strouse received 922 votes edging Dave Crilow who finished second with 856, followed by Dustin Kaufman with 839 votes and Holley Johnson with 758. Steve Johnson received 350 of the 3,725 votes that were cast in the race
Miller received 51 percent of the votes to 48.5 percent for the challenger Yoder. There were 3,500 votes cast in the race. Results are unofficial until an official count is held.
Holmes County has 17,763 registered voters, and there were 4,332 votes cast in the primary, according to the Holmes County Board of Elections.
Both winners were grateful for the support and humble in their victories.
Miller: 'Kind of close, but I'll take it'
"That was kind of close, but I'll take it," Miller said. "I'm thrilled, and I thank the people of Holmes County. I'm so humbled that they're going to give me four more years to serve. It's been a real pleasure, and I will not let them down.
"I look forward to working with the new board of commissioners," he said. "Congratulations to Eric Strouse. I think we'll have a great board. We'll get things done and keep Holmes County headed in the right direction."
Strouse expressed his gratitude for the support.
"I am really, really thankful for all the votes," he said. "Everybody was in the 20 percent range and I got 24.75 percent. Everybody was well-qualified and that's why it was so close. I'm just very thankful for all the support I got from all the voters of Holmes County.
'You could pick what strength you wanted'
"They all had their game faces on at the candidates night," Strouse continued. They all showed their strength in answering questions. They were all qualified, and you could pick what strength you wanted. I just felt the candidates nights were a good experience for everybody."
Strouse added he felt the experience he gained from running against Dave Hall in the previous commissioner's race was beneficial this time around.
"That gave me a little bit more insight as to what people react to," he said. "When I ran against Dave, I didn't do a mailer. I think a mailer is a little more personal, especially if they know you. Plus, I did a little bit more door-to-door this time around."
Strouse said some name recognition from his previous race also helped him in the race.
"There's a lot of friends and family support in Holmes County, and that's what you see in the results with everybody around 20 percent," he added. "I truly appreciate the support I received."
In the race for state representative, the 98th District, serving Holmes County, Mark Hiner received 1,871 of the 3,020 votes cast. Scott Pullins finished second with 688, followed by Brandon Lape with 461.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Strouse, Miller take wins in Holmes commissioner Republican primary
