Petition to abolish county exec fails; county leaders consider additional ideas

By Brandi Makuski

PORTAGE COUNTY — A petition to abolish the Portage County Executive position did not collect enough signatures, but County Board Chairman Ray Reser said efforts to address concerns with the role will continue.

“We got a significant number of signatures,” Reser said, estimating the total to be “somewhere in the range of a couple thousand.” Reser added that he and Portage County Executive John Pavelski are considering other options.

To have qualified for April ballot placement, supporters needed to gather and present at least 5,053 valid signatures—15% of the county’s most recent vote for governor—to the Portage County Board of Supervisors. The deadline to sign was Dec. 2.

Pavelski, who campaigned, partially, on dissolving the county executive office, said he was surprised by the lack of stronger public support.

“I was under the auspices that there was a greater constituency that wanted to actually take a look at this, and I was surprised there wasn’t more people petitioning and getting signatures,” Pavelski said. “I actually think the county exec form of government is the better form of government if you can get somebody who is qualified and has the community’s best interests at hand. I don’t think we’ve been able to do that over the past 20 years.”

The petition would have given voters the opportunity to decide whether to replace the county executive with a county administrator, a role that requires specific qualifications under state law. Reser said the lack of qualifications required for the executive position has been a longstanding issue.

“You need someone really qualified in that position,” Reser said. “We expect qualifications for our finance director, Health and Human Services, and other large departments, yet the position overseeing all of county staff requires none.”

Reser also pointed to the challenges of completing major capital improvement projects within a four-year executive term or two-year board term. Such projects, he said, often take five to seven years to complete.

“It’s massively costing Portage County because now we’re backed into a corner,” Reser said. “Costs have skyrocketed, and decisions need to be made.”

Pavelski expressed concerns about timing, saying the petition process felt rushed to meet the deadline for spring ballot placement.

“I was hoping to have at least one forum with an administrator, another county executive, and an agenda where people could come and ask questions,” Pavelski said. “The timeframe got really close, so they had to push the petition forward, and we got what we got.”

He also noted the lack of strong public debate on the proposal.

“I thought for sure some people would voice strong opinions one way or another, but that didn’t really happen,” Pavelski said. “There wasn’t much opposition, but there also wasn’t much promotion.”

Reser acknowledged that gathering signatures was particularly difficult during the holiday season and following a major election cycle. However, he said the petition demonstrated public interest in revisiting the structure of county leadership.

“Even under terrible circumstances, there’s a lot of county residents who are interested in having a voice,” Reser said.

Pavelski, who has publicly supported abolishing the position, also cited concerns about the steep learning curve faced by incoming county executives.

“Every time a county executive comes in, there’s a steep learning curve,” Reser said. “We give them a $135 million annual budget and 630 employees and expect them to run the county effectively. That’s a tall order without specific qualifications.”

Reser emphasized the nonpartisan intent of the role, though he acknowledged politics often play a role in county elections. He also noted that only residents of Portage County can serve as executive, which limits the candidate pool compared to larger counties with similar positions.

The petition’s failure has not discouraged Reser and Pavelski from pursuing reforms.

“John and I are looking at other options moving ahead,” Reser said.

Reser also expressed the need for improved communication between county leadership and the public, advocating for a public information officer to provide consistent messaging.

“The public has no idea what the county is doing, and most of the time it’s misconstrued or misunderstood,” Reser said. “That’s doing a disservice to voters and county staff.”