Anthony DeGidio, a Maumee attorney who spent much of the last three years filing lawsuits against the Lucas County Board of Elections, is now a member of that same body.

Mr. DeGidio, 56, was appointed to a Republican seat on the board Thursday by Secretary of State Jon Husted and quickly sworn in. He replaces Patrick Kriner who resigned June 15.

The appointment fills out the last vacancy on the four-member board. And it means the board can fill the positions of director and deputy director that have been vacant since March.

Mr. DeGidio joins Jon Stainbrook, the chairman of the county Republican Party, as the second Republican on the board, which by law has two from each of the two major political parties.

Ron Rothenbuhler and Rita Clark are the Democratic members of the board.

Mr. Stainbrook said Mr. DeGidio’s legal background will serve the board well.

“After you see all of the legal wranglings that happen at the board of elections you really need to have the party chairman and then there should be a lawyer,” Mr. Stainbrook said. “Tony DeGidio, with all the cases he’s done, he’s very aware of the Ohio Revised Code election law and that’s what you have to have is somebody looking out for the way things should be done. We’re lucky to have him.”

Toledo City Councilman George Sarantou, who claimed he was wrongly defeated in the 2010 Lucas County commissioner race because of the miscounting of provisional ballots, was invited by Mr. Stainbrook to observe Thursday’s oath of office, administered by Toledo Municipal Judge Bill Connelly.

“This is just another step forward in restoring trust and integrity to the elections in Lucas County,” Mr. Sarantou said.

Mr. Sarantou, a Republican, was ahead of Democrat Carol Contrada in the unofficial election count last November until some 4,000 provisional ballots were added, making Ms. Contrada the winner by 193 votes.

Mr. Sarantou filed a complaint in Lucas County Common Pleas Court, with Mr. DeGidio as one of his lawyers, alleging “irregularities, errors, frauds, and mistakes” in the counting of provisional ballots. He later dropped his case, saying it was too much of a burden on taxpayers and voters, but continued to maintain he’d been deprived of his rightful election.

In March, Secretary of State Jon Husted ordered Director Linda Howe and Deputy Director Jeremy Demagall dismissed because they ignored a legal advisory from the Secretary of State not to count 114 provisional ballots.

Mr. DeGidio has opposed the board in several legal matters over the last three years on behalf of Mr. Stainbrook and the Lucas County Republican Party.

In one case, Mr. DeGidio represented Kelly Bensman, a member of Mr. Stainbrook’s executive committee, to compel the elections board to release public records. Ms. Bensman has a motion in front of the Ohio 6th District Court of Appeals for payment of her attorney costs. Mr. DeGidio said he withdrew from the case as soon as he was nominated to the election board.

Contract Tom Troy at:

tomtroy@theblade.com

or 419-724-6058.