Gunning for Shenigo

PERKINS TWP. — Four Erie County Democrats —Tom Ferrell, Bill Monaghan, Amy Grubbe and Julie Farrar — hope to sabotage a fellow party member in his bid for re-election next year.For the fourth-consecutive time, Erie County commissioner Pat Shenigo takes on a Democrat opponent in the March primary. This time, it's Julie Farrar, who lost her general election bid in 2018 for a commission seat to Republican Steve Shoffner. First elected in 2008, and re-elected twice since then, Shenigo faced opposition from his own party each time:• In 2008, Shenigo defeated Linda Miller-Moore.• In 2012, Shenigo beat Sam Artino.• In 2016, Shenigo won against Grant Harding.On the flip-side, Republican county commissioner Matt Old is also up for re-election. But his fellow GOP members didn't find an opponent to run against him in a primary.It's unknown exactly why Shenigo — heralded by many, including local Democrats, Republicans, area executives and various government officials — always faces intraparty competition.But what is known: Grubbe, Ferrell and Monaghan have been gunning for him for years.SWITCH IT UPIn 2009, Shenigo teamed up with Monaghan, who already was a commissioner when Shenigo joined the board. The pair worked together throughout Shenigo's first four-year term, with Monaghan following Shenigo's lead. Among other accomplishments, Shenigo's initiatives included:• Reigning in the county's debt, peaking to $116 million in 2008; In every year since then, it's decreased, dropping to about $63 million today.• Turning around landfill operations, which became profitable after losing money annually for many years.• Advocating to keep the NASA Plum Brook Station open when federal officials threatened to shut it down; Since then, many testing projects haven taken place from there. This would include engineers testing Orion — which involves taking astronauts into deep space and maybe even Mars — at Plum Brook.• Playing a pivotal role in the long battle between Erie MetroParks and area residents entangled in the Huron River Greenway saga; Shenigo worked with landowners and lawyers to end, what many believed, would be endless litigation that could have bankrupted Erie MetroParks. The resolution not only saved the district but avoided a $2 million estimated legal payout taxpayers would have fronted.Monaghan voted with him on virtually every initiative Shenigo started. Ferrell, who served as the de facto leader on county commission for two decades before Shenigo's arrival, was essentially squeezed out of the decision-making process.Then, after Shenigo's first term, Monaghan surprisingly turned on Shenigo. In 2014, when Monaghan faced re-election, he partnered with Ferrell on commission, despite his strong and consistent criticism of Ferrell's leadership for years prior to that.At that time, some in the party believed Monaghan switched teams because he did not want to face a primary opponent. It was speculated, behind the scenes, Ferrell bullied Monaghan. Ferrell would find someone to run against Monaghan if he didn't flip-flop allegiances and turn on Shenigo.Monaghan ended up not facing a Democrat opponent in the 2014 primary. Since then, Monaghan hasn't been shy about expressing his contempt toward Shenigo, accusing him of nonsensical wrongdoings he could never substantiate. Ferrell, the much more seasoned politician, also has reasons to work against Shenigo. It was Shenigo, after all, who upended the power balance on the three-person commission that favored Ferrell for many years.COUSIN JULIE'S TURN, AGAINFarrar — a former Sandusky city commissioner and a cousin to Grubbe, the Erie County Democratic Party chairwoman — was expected to run for Old's county commission seat this time around. Old is a Republican. She changed it up, however, just days before the Dec. 18 filing deadline, gunning for Shenigo's seat instead. Farrar declined to comment about why she changed races so late into the process.Grubbe's animosity toward Shenigo has been pronounced and apparent for many years. In 2008, at the start of Shenigo's first campaign, Grubbe told him he would "have to wait" because it wasn't "his turn" to run for a seat, Shenigo recalled.There've been times when Grubbe's animosity toward Shenigo boiled over in childish ways:• In 2008, at the Erie County Fair, Grubbe tossed Shenigo's campaign literature, available in a public space where candidates routinely stump for support, on the ground. She also wouldn't let Shenigo inside a Democratic party tent.• In 2012, at Washington Park in downtown Sandusky, Grubbe refused to give both Shenigo and Monaghan an invitation to see President Barack Obama speak during a campaign stop. Almost all other county Democrats holding an elected office received tickets the party distributed for entry into the restricted area.Farrar did not respond to questions about why she wants to replace Shenigo on commission. When she was a candidate in 2018, against Shoffner, Farrar said she approved of the way Shenigo handled his job. Farrar declined to cite any failures or reasons why she believes voters should reject him now.Farrar also would not answer questions about why she switched races from the open primary to an intraparty race or what influence Grubbe might have had on that decision.Grubbe said Farrar did not ask for her advice. "If I did have any conversation with Julie Farrar, or with any other candidate, my conversations are private as you have been advised in the past," Grubbe told the Register. The two did talk it through, however, because after Farrar switched races at the last minute, Grubbe helped Harding circulate petitions for the open race against Old in the fall. Grubbe appeared to be in the thick of it. "Once Julie Farrar advised she was running against Pat Shenigo, Grant Harding consulted with his family and finalized his decision to run," Grubbe said. Her decision to circulate his petitions is routine. "When asked to assist, I have circulated petitions for candidates and issues in every election cycle," Grubbe said. Harding, of Vermilion, did not respond to questions about his candidacy or whether Grubbe influenced his decision to run. There is little information available about his background or qualifications, although he did briefly serve as a school board member. Read Grubbe's responseGET ME A JOB, PLEASEDespite demurring when asked about her role in recruiting candidates, Grubbe enjoys being a force to be reckoned with in the party, and she looks out for her friends. Along the way, she's helped both Ferrell and Monaghan stay relevant. Jon Husted, the former Ohio secretary of state who is now lieutenant governor, refused to reappoint Grubbe to the county elections board in 2017, deeming her unfit to oversee local voting matters citing her "harassing treatment of staff, a poor relationship with the media and poor relationships with other governmental offices and entities."Grubbe "appears to lack the basic ability to get along with co-workers," Husted wrote in his decision. "This manner of behavior risks erosion of the essential public confidence underlying our democratic nature of governance."A fighter, Grubbe successfully worked to get Ferrell appointed to replace her on the board.Two years later, earlier this year, she engineered a vote against longtime Democratic county elections board member Kevin Zeiher, an attorney, and replaced him with Monaghan.RUNNING ON HIS RECORDGrubbe's suggestion she had little to do with Farrar's decision to challenge Shenigo doesn't pass the smell test for some of her fellow Democrats, including Jim Murray, the party's vice-chairman."I was disappointed to learn that Julie Farrar was running against Pat Shenigo," Jim Murray said. "I don't think we should be encouraging Democratic candidates to run against successful candidates like Pat Shenigo. He has done a good job balancing a budget for Erie County."Old also found it puzzling. "I was very surprised to see Amy run someone against a long-term elected official from her own party," Old said. "I don't believe it is the job of the party chair to put someone through an ideological purity test."Old said Grubbe recruited Harding to run against him this time and also when Harding opposed Shenigo in 2016. Grubbe was still circulating Harding's petitions hours before the recent filing deadline, he said.Another prominent Democrat also backed Shenigo's bid for re-election and questioned their party's tactics."Pat has clearly been a successful officeholder in terms of bringing down the county debt, providing a level of service that is appropriate for the county, rehabilitating (The Meadows at Osborn Park) and so much more," Sandusky ex officio mayor Dennis Murray Jr. said. "For the life of me, I can't understand why, instead of working to attract new Democrats to work for offices that are held by Republicans or are open, why we would be working to induce primary challenges to successful office holders."Sandusky ex officio mayor Dennis Murray Jr.Murray also has concerns about Ferrell and Monaghan both serving on the county elections board. "It would be my preference that the party would have at least one lawyer representing us," said Murray. Of the two Republican elections board members, Nic Smith is a lawyer. "That is critical so the Democrats in the room have equal footing with the Republicans in the room."Ferrell is a career politician. Monaghan is a retired purchasing clerk. Erie County commissioners Pat Shenigo When out campaigning, Shenigo — also baffled by the switch up in his race — said he won't focus on the negatives. Instead he'll concentrate on what he's done to make Erie County a better place for residents, visitors and businesses."I really don't know Julie Farrar, and I really don't know why she was talked into running against me. I also don't know what she accomplished in her time as a city commissioner," Shenigo said. "For me, I'll run on my record. Democrats should ask themselves: 'Is Erie County better off today than it was 12 years ago?'"Reach reporter Andy Ouriel at ouriel@sanduskyregister.com and follow him on Twitter @AndyOuriel.Several Erie County Democrats — from left, Tom Ferrell, Bill Monaghan, Julie Farrar and Amy Grubbe — are seemingly working together to overthrow fellow party mate and incumbent Pat Shenigo from office