Kerg, Pence join Board of Elections

MELANIE SPEICHER
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SIDNEY — Two Shelby County Republicans attended their first meeting as members of the Shelby County Board of Elections Monday morning.

James Kerg Jr. and Douglas Pence, both of Sidney, were nominated by the Shelby County Republican Executive Committee to become members of the board of election. Secretary of State Frank LaRose approved the nominations and appointed both to the board.

Kerg is replacing Chris Gibbs on the board. Both Kerg and Democrat Merrill Asher will be serving four-year terms. Asher was nominated by the Democratic Party to serve another term on the board.

Pence is completing the term of office held by Jon Baker, who resigned in February.

Asher served as temporary chairman of the board, which then appointed Pam Kerrigan as director. Donnie Chupp was appointed deputy director.

Since Kerrigan is a Democrat, the chairman for the board has to a Republican, said Asher. Kerg was elected chairman.

Pence was sworn into office by Kerrigan at the beginning of the meeting. Asher and Kerg received the oath of office in Columbus by LaRose.

The board learned of a request from the Darke County Board of Elections to allow seven registered voters vote in Shelby County for a Fort Loramie School District levy. Darke County doesn’t have any county-wide races or issues in the precinct where the voters live.

Chupp said Darke county would send out signature books for the voters to manually sign. The voters would not be checked in on Shelby County e-poll books and the ballots will not go through the scanners.

Both Kerrigan and Chupp will continue to explore the process of having the Darke County voters cast their votes in Shelby County.

The board agreed to change the meeting time from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the third Monday of the month. Due to scheduling conflicts, the next meeting will be Wednesday, March 20, at 4 p.m.

Pence
http://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2019/03/web1_PenceDouglas_19-copy.jpgPence

Kerg
http://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2019/03/web1_KergJames_19.jpgKerg

Pam Kerrigan, Shelby County Board of Elections director, right, gives the oath of office to Douglas Pence, of Sidney, Monday morning. Pence is replacing Jon Baker, who resigned in February.
http://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2019/03/web1_swearingin-copy.jpgPam Kerrigan, Shelby County Board of Elections director, right, gives the oath of office to Douglas Pence, of Sidney, Monday morning. Pence is replacing Jon Baker, who resigned in February. Melanie Speicher | Sidney Daily News
Republicans attend first meeting Monday

Meet the new members

SIDNEY — Both new members of the Shelby County Board of Elections have strong ties to the county and its residents.

James Kerg Jr., of Sidney, is a 1974 graduate of Lehman Catholic High School and a 1978 graduate of Wittenberg University, where he earned a bachelor of arts degree in business administration.

Kerg is the owner of Precision Custom Products in DeGraff, where he is the chief executive officer, president and board chairman. From 1987 to 1992, he worked at Freshway Foods as a co-founding stockholder and director. He was the CFO, executive vice president, director and stockholder at Gilardi Frozen Foods Corp. from 1985 to 1990.

He was the co-founder and senior partner of Kerg, Russell & Co., CPA’s, from 1982 to 1985. From 1978 to 1981, he was a staff member and senior auditor for Peat Marwick Mitchell & Co., Columbus.

He has served on the board for Elizabeth’s New Life Centers Inc., Lehman Catholic High School Foundation and Shelby County United Way.He is currently a vice president and board member of Ohio Value Voters Inc., Cleveland. He has served as a campaign strategist and adviser throughout Ohio.

From 1982 to 1990, he served on the Shelby County Republican Party’s central committee and executive committee. He served on Sidney City Council from 1985 to 1989.

He and his wife, Theresa, are the parents of seven children and have three granddaughters. He is a member of Holy Angels Church, Knights of Columbus and is a life member of the NRA and USGA.

Pence, a 1067 graduate of Sidney High School, is retired from Xerox Corporation, where he had been employed for 35 years from 1972 to 2007.

He is a veteran of the U.S. Army and served from1969 to 1971. He was stationed in Bamberg Germany, where he was on border duty on the East German and Czechoslovakia border. He was also a radio repairman, armored personnel carrier driver and a member of the infantry during his time in the Army.

He is a member of Sidney American Legion Post 217, Sidney Moose Lodge, is a life member of the Shelby County Deer Hunters Association, member of the Sidney County Liberty Group where he is an organizational director and president.

He is a past chairman, president and vice president of the Sidney-Shelby County Chapter of the National Management Association. He is a leader for the Happy Herders 4-H Club and a leader for the first Livestock Herding Club in America, which was founded by Lewis Pence. He is a herding sheep dog trainer and works with border collies.

Pence and his wife, H.R., have been married for 50 years. They are the parents of two children and have four grandchildren. Pence is a lifelong resident of Shelby County.

He is a past state vice president of the Vocational Industrial Club of America.

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