Kingston to become Brecksville’s next mayor

by Melissa Martin

Brecksville City Councilman Daryl J. Kingston, who was appointed to city council to fulfill the unexpired term of Jack Petsche in 2020, will assume the role of Brecksville’s Mayor in January following the retirement of Jerry Hruby, the city’s longest-serving mayor.

Hruby, 75, served nine terms as the city’s mayor after being first elected in the fall of 1987.

According to unofficial results posted by the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections Nov. 8, Kingston defeated his opponent Jack Petsche at the Nov. 7 polls by a vote of 4,434 (63.7%) to 2,525 (36.3%).

Kingston, 51, listed fiscal responsibility, public safety and maintain the city’s high quality of living are among his top goals during his first term in office.

Brecksville city council will also have a few new faces in January as voters have elected political newcomers to fill two of the four at-large seats up for grabs this election cycle. Dan Bender, who received the largest percentage of the vote of all seven candidates in the running, will be joined on the board by fellow newcomer Mark Jantzen. Voters also re-elected council members Ann Koepke and Dominic Caruso to fill the remaining two seats.

Bender earned 3,901 votes (18.4%), Koepke 3,533 (16.7%), Jantzen 3,513 (16.7%), and Caruso 3,379 (15.6). Other candidates in the running included Stephanie Simon Bartos 3,031 votes (14.3%); Eric Geyer, 2,184 (10.3%) and Steve A. Schadler 1,648 votes (7.8%).

In other news, the city’s voters also approved all charter and zoning amendments on the ballot. ∞

Photo (above): Daryl Kingston