Hamilton County Democratic Party Chairman Tim Burke is asking for a special meeting of the county's Board of Elections to investigate what he says are false claims made by Steve Chabot and Mike Robison.
Chabot and Robison allegedly have told people that State Rep. Denise Driehaus (D-31st District) has contacted the Board of Elections about switiching her name on the fall ballot from Driehaus to her married surname. The implication is that she is trying to distance herself from her brother, Congressman Steve Driehaus (D-Price Hill), who is in a heated campaign against Chabot.—-
“Chabot and Robison have repeatedly claimed that State Rep. Denise Driehaus (who Robison is attempting to unseat) contacted the Hamilton County Board of Elections in an effort to change her last name on the November ballot,” Burke wrote to the board. “They further claim the Board of Elections' staff refused Rep. Driehaus' request to do so because she ran in the Primary using the last name of Driehaus. Such claims are completely false and insulting.
“More than 25 years ago when Denise Driehaus married her husband, she made the decision to keep her maiden name of Driehaus. She has made no effort to change her name at any time since then, either for personal or political reasons,” Burke added. “The claim that she attempted to do so is a falsehood and a violation of Ohio elections laws.”
Burke plans on asking his fellow board members to issue subpoenas to Chabot and Robison to compel them to testify on the matter.
CityBeat has asked the Chabot campaign for a response, and will update this post if one arrives.
