A welcome show of bipartisanship in North Ridgeville

This editorial has been updated to correct the spelling of Michele Arredondo's name. It would have been all too easy for the four Republicans who form the majority of North Ridgeville City Council to name one of their own Monday to replace former 2nd Ward Councilman Eric Shaffer. Shaffer, after all, was a Republican. He narrowly won his seat on the seven-member Council in 2023, defeating Democrat Bob Holub by 23 votes. Shaffer resigned from Council last month after he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of theft and tampering with records. He was originally charged with felonies in the case, which centered on accusations he stole more than $8,300 in benefits from the Lorain County Veterans Service Commission. Shaffer is due to be sentenced Friday, although part of his plea agreement called for him to resign from Council or face jail time. Instead of picking another Republican, two GOP Council members, Council President Holly Swenk and 1st Ward Councilwoman Katie Rogerson, joined with Council's two newly elected Democrats to name Holub to serve out the remaining two years of Shaffer's term. It was an unexpected display of bipartisanship. Such displays have become increasingly rare in our hyperpolarized times and deserve to be recognized when they happen. Granted, the stances of national political parties rarely extend to local issues, such as which roads to pave, but politicians elected in partisan contests tend to favor their fellow party members when it comes to filling vacancies. For example, then-Gov. John Kasich, a Republican, appointed Republican lawyer Michele Arredondo in 2015 to replace James Burge, a Democrat, when Burge resigned as a county Common Pleas Court judge. (Burge left the bench after he was convicted of falsification and tampering with records charges stemming from his financial disclosure forms.) Similarly, in 2023, when North Ridgeville Councilman Dennis Boose, D-2nd Ward, died in office, the GOP-dominated Council named Republican Frank Toth as his replacement. (Toth wasn't running in the 2nd Ward race that year, which had featured Shaffer challenging Boose. Democrats named Holub, whose day job is director of recreation in Rocky River, as his replacement on the ballot.) Swenk told us that seven people, a mix of Democrats, Republicans and independents, had applied to replace Shaffer. Holub was nominated by Councilwoman Cali Zingale, D-at large, but, in another display of bipartisanship, Councilman Paul Wolanski, D-at large, nominated Republican Delbert Robinson for the seat if Holub failed to win the support of a majority of Council. Councilman Bruce Abens, R-3rd Ward, nominated former Councilman Jason Jacobs, a Republican who lost his at-large seat on Council in November. (Abens and Councilman Clifford Winkel, R-4th Ward, voted against appointing Holub.) In last year's race for at-large Council seats, Swenk, who had represented the 1st Ward for years, was the top votegetter followed by Wolanski and Zingale. The election of two Democrats in a citywide contest was a marked change from the city's recent elections, which Republicans had dominated. (Council voted to fill Swenk's former seat with Rogerson.) It's hard to say whether last year's election results marked the beginning of a long-term shift in the city's politics, but Republicans would be wise to recognize that the electorate appeared to want some change. "I just know the people of the city want a Council that will listen to them," Swenk told us. Holub also gave a nod to putting the needs of the city over those of the party in comments to our reporter Garrett Looker. "I look very much forward to working with everyone throughout the city administration and City Council, regardless of party," Holub wrote. We're sure that Council's Democrats and Republicans will have plenty of disagreements in the coming years, but as Holub's appointment showed, it's possible for officials of different parties to work together. Here's hoping Monday marked the start of an era of bipartisan cooperation in North Ridgeville.