As industrial solar has increasingly become a political focal point for many Knox County voters since late 2023, local politicians are being put to the test by anti-industrial solar advocates.
Most recently, Clinton Township Trustee Donna Hochstetler has been in the hot seat after angering anti-industrial solar activists and being described by some critics as dominating Clinton Township's May 20 proceedings like a "queen.”
She now faces whispers of a potential recall.
“I have not heard about that,” Hochstetler told the Mount Vernon News in regard to discussions of a potential recall. “This is a first.”
Hochstetler said she was unaware of how recall elections worked and would seek legal advice on the issue.
“I'll have to ask the prosecutor about that,” she said.
Hochstetler and Clinton Townships’ other two trustees – Jay Maners and Terry Thompson – have remained neutral on industrial solar.
She defended Clinton Township’s neutrality on the issue.
“We're trying to be as fair as we can to everybody and I know we've ruffled feathers, but you ruffle feathers in everything you do,” Hochstetler said. “Unfortunately, you're never going to be 100% with anybody all the time.”
Clinton Township resident Rick McCament, a member of anti-industrial solar group Preserve Knox County, presented an anti-industrial solar petition at the May 20 meeting signed by more than 350 Clinton Township residents.
“Tensions are high,” McCament told the Mount Vernon News. “There were a lot of people very, very aggravated by the behavior and the way the citizens were treated, especially those citizens who hadn't been to the township meetings before until the petition and their signatures that sparked their interest and there were a lot of discussions after the meeting in different pockets.”
McCament said while he personally did not express an opinion on the topic of a recall, it was readily embraced by others in the anti-industrial solar crowd.
A recall for Hochstetler or other local officeholders requires a petition with signatures equaling 15% of the total votes cast in the most recent election.
Hochstetler won her seat in 2023 with 435 votes against opponents Danielle Daughriety, who placed second with 249 votes, and John Holland, who came in third in the race with 194 votes.
This means those seeking a recall would only need 15% of the 878 votes cast in the race – a total of 132 signatures to successfully apply for a recall.
Clinton Township is in the minority county-wide, thus the interest in its stance on the industrial solar issue. Of Knox County’s 22 townships, 18, along with the City of Mount Vernon, have passed resolutions asking the Knox County Commission to not permit industrial solar developments in their jurisdictions.
The solar debate has shifted the political dynamic in Knox County and has painted targets on the back of those who might take a neutral position on the subject.
Just ask Knox County Commissioner Thom Collier, now in the final stretch of his third term— he will be bounced out of office after landing in last place in March’s primaries based on the Commission allowing industrial solar development in the first place.
Voters opted instead for two anti-industrial solar candidates in Barry Lester and Drenda Keesee, who received the GOP nomination to the Knox County Commission, effectively reforming the makeup of the commission as 2-1 anti-industrial solar.
The Knox County Commissioners under Collier, a former state representative, initially opened the opportunity for developers like the Frasier Solar Project when it passed legislation allowing for industrial solar.
Keesee called the electoral victory a referendum on industrial solar in Knox County.
In a “Letter to the Editor” published by the Mount Vernon News, Keesee noted that she and fellow anti-industrial solar candidate Bob Phillips collectively garnered 73% of the vote, opposing incumbent Collier's pro-industrial solar stance.
“In both races for county commissioner, anti-solar candidates won! 11,007 votes were cast,” she said.
Due to the low barrier with which to recall in Ohio, several elected officials have been subjected to recalls as of late in the state. Earlier this year, Buckeye Lake residents decisively voted to recall former Mayor Jeryne Peterson amid ongoing conflicts, signaling a desire for new leadership in the village.
Peterson, elected in 2021, was removed from office after receiving just 24% of the vote in the special recall election, with 76% voting against her remaining in office.
The recall effort, driven by concerns over Peterson's conduct and management, followed a tumultuous year marked by employee complaints, censure votes from the village council and legal disputes.
Notably, in December 2023, East Cleveland Mayor Brandon King survived a second recall attempt as voters overwhelmingly rejected efforts to remove him from office.
With more than 70% of the ballots cast in support of King, this marks the second consecutive year that he has thwarted a recall bid. The recall effort, driven by concerns about King's conduct and management, followed controversy surrounding video footage allegedly showing the mayor drinking and smoking on city property.
