Case involving Ohio State Representative candidate's eligibility - WFMJ.com News weather sports for Youngstown-Warren Ohio

The case involving the Republican candidate for representative for Ohio's 58th District is now in the hands of Ohio's Secretary of State.

During a Thursday morning hearing at the Mahoning County Board of Elections, the Board decided to take the question of whether or not Republican candidate Tex Fischer is eligible to appear on the November 2024 ballot.

This decision came after two board members voted for certifying Fischer as a candidate and two others voted against it ending in a tie.

The Board's Vice Chairwoman Sandra Barger along with Robert Aurandt voted in favor of Fischer's certification, but Board Chairman and Attorney Dave Betras along with Joyce Kale-Pesta voted against it.

The tiebreaker will be handled by Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who will ultimately make the decision of whether or not Fischer will appear on the ballot.

21 News spoke to Fischer following the meeting and he told us he has "complete faith" that LaRose will rule in his favor.

Thursday's hearing came about after Mahoning County Democratic Party Chair Chris Anderson filed a protest against Fischer appearing on the ballot.

Anderson is accusing Fischer of violating a statute in the Ohio Revised Code requiring anyone who has legally changed their name within the past five years to disclose that name change when filing for candidacy.

Fischer described the situation as a "petty political stunt" designed to deprive Republican voters of a choice in the upcoming election.

"In a way I take that as an admission of defeat. [Democrats] know they can't beat us at the ballot box, so they're trying to beat us at the Board of Elections and the Secretary of State's office," Fischer said.

In a statement provided to 21 News on Wednesday, Anderson said it is not fair that multiple LGBT candidates in Ohio have been kicked off the ballot under this same law and wants the law to be applied equally to Fischer.

Anderson also released a new statement Thursday afternoon saying this case is not to personally attack Fischer, but to get clarity on the law. That full statement can be read below.

“As I’ve said from the outset to anyone who has asked, this isn’t about Tex as a person, I dont know him outside of his fringe policies - I dont care what he calls himself, that’s his business. It’s about getting clarity on if the law that his party used to keep off 4 candidates applies, or if there are two sets of rules. One for republicans and one for everyone else."

"It’s a sad state of affairs that have brought us here entirely fueled by gerrymandering that has allowed the Ohio General assembly to become so corrupt and unproductive. I hope that Secretary LaRose will decide quickly - and that even if he allows him on the ballot his ruling will provide future clarity for candidates with updates to the candidate guide and maybe even spur the general assembly to fix an ambiguous law.”

You can read more about this matter, as well as the full protest from Anderson in our related coverage below.

Case involving Ohio State Representative candidate's eligibility in hands of Secretary of State