Martins Ferry Mayor’s ‘Move’ Leads to Electoral Confusion
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Martins Ferry Mayor John Davies was rather surprised to learn Friday that his voter registration had been transferred to Jefferson County -- a residency status that would make him ineligible for his elected position in Martins Ferry -- but election officials worked quickly to resolve the problem.
"I still live in the same place," Davies said via phone Friday.
He acknowledged that his business, Davies Construction, is located in Jefferson County -- at the 3084 County Road 17, Rayland, address where his new voter registration listed his residence. Davies said he recently purchased a truck for that business and that an error must have occurred while he was registering the vehicle. He noted that a similar situation happened about three years ago.
"I still live on Seabright's Lane," he continued. "Half of my vehicles are registered in Belmont County and half in Jefferson County.
"I still live in the same house where I have for almost 50 years, unless my wife threw me out after I went to work this morning," he quipped.
Earlier Friday, Aaron Moore, director of elections for Belmont County, confirmed that Davies' voter registration had changed. He said elections board employees had been reviewing voter registrations in the county and noticed that Davies had "merged out" -- meaning that he apparently had moved to another county. At that point, Moore said, they were planning to contact city leaders about the process of replacing the mayor.
Because Davies was elected as an Independent, city council would have needed to appoint his replacement if he had in fact moved outside of the city. Moore said Davies' current term expires in 2023.
Davies said he called elections officials in both Belmont and Jefferson counties in an effort to resolve the matter.
Afterward, Moore said he had talked with Davies and with the Ohio Secretary of State's Office to seek guidance.
"I spoke with him," Moore said of Davies. "He registered a work vehicle in Jefferson County. You can update your voter registration at the BMV (Bureau of Motor Vehicles) and a mistake was made. We are working with the secretary of state to make sure we get his registration updated and corrected."