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Ohio’s Boards of Elections are supposed to protect democracy, but in practice they act more like “Boards of (S)elections.” In Kettering, candidate Nevin Smith collected enough signatures to run for city council, only to have 17 thrown out as “not genuine” by staff with no handwriting experts and no evidence of fraud. Voters swore before a notary that their signatures were real, but Director Jeff Rezabek refused to share the affidavits with the board before its vote. Smith was barred from speaking until after he was disqualified. With Kettering’s late filing deadline, legal remedies may come too late to save his candidacy or voters’ choices. Meanwhile, independents—71 percent of Ohio’s electorate—are completely shut out of Boards of Elections, which are controlled by just two Democrats and two Republicans per county. It’s time to confront how party hacks, not voters, decide who gets on the ballot in Ohio.

Defense attorney Jon Paul Rion’s latest filing in the Michael Foley Quo Warranto case attacks me as “self-indulgent,” a “tirade,” and “legal babbling,” while ignoring the law. Foley was disqualified from office the moment he was sentenced on June 17, 2025, yet continues to collect a paycheck. His plea withdrawal cannot erase two weeks of ineligibility or the fact that the deal itself was illegal. From the Joey Williams bribery cover-up, to the rapist prosecutor John Amos, to the Board of Elections shielding Daj’za Demmings, Montgomery County shows a pattern of selective enforcement and lawlessness that leaves citizens paying the cost of accountability.

Dayton Public Schools just beat back a state law cooked up by Phil Plummer and Tom Young that would have punished only Montgomery County students. The court called it unconstitutional, saving families from new transportation costs. But the deeper problem goes beyond buses. Ohio is drowning in too many layers of government, frozen county lines, rigged congressional districts, and Boards of Elections stacked with party loyalists. With 71 percent of Ohio voters registered as independents and shut out of primaries, the system protects politicians, not taxpayers. Real reform would cut duplication, merge jurisdictions, and give independents a seat at the table.

The Dayton Daily News has become a shadow of a real newspaper—short on resources, institutional knowledge, and timely reporting. With printing outsourced to Knoxville, readers of the print and e-edition are stuck with two-day-old news, while only email alerts deliver stories a bit earlier. Recent examples highlight how real local news goes unreported: Kettering Councilwoman Jyl Hall resigning months before her term’s end, and the death of former congressional candidate Joseph Kuzniar, a retired Air Force Lt. Colonel. Meanwhile, readers get filler content—cookie-cutter crime blurbs that appear AI-generated—while obituaries and legal notices keep the paper afloat financially. Esrati.com continues to fill the gap, offering depth and accountability, and hints at future efforts to build a true independent media presence in Dayton as traditional outlets collapse.

Esrati.com once again scooped Dayton’s local media, exposing who will take the fall for Montgomery County Jail’s failures and breaking news on Dayton Public Schools’ lawsuit against Ohio’s unfair bus transfer law. From the taxpayer-funded legal mess caused by Phil Plummer and friends, to DPS winning an injunction to keep bus passes, to the launch of the Dayton Bike Gang e-bike program, the stories you won’t find anywhere else are here. Add in the latest twists at the Board of Elections—including a candidate accused of falsifying petitions—and more signs that UniGov is the only solution, and you’ll see why this site remains Dayton’s most fearless watchdog.