There will be six candidates on the Nov. 6 election ballot seeking the county court seat vacated earlier this year by Diane Vettori, who is the subject of a criminal investigation and is prohibited by the Ohio Supreme Court from hearing cases while her case is pending.
      Of the six candidates seeking the seat, only one is rated as “Highly Recommended” by the Mahoning County Bar Association and that is Atty. Kathi McNabb Welsh, of Deer Run Dr., Boardman. McNabb Welsh has served as the Mahoning County Chief Deputy Clerk of Courts since Dec., 1994 and has been a member of the county’s education service center’s governing board since June, 2003. She has also served as an Assistant Mahoning County Prosecutor.
      The bar association considered the qualities of legal knowledge, professional experience, judicial temperament, integrity, diligence and professional responsibility is giving McNabb Welsh its top rating.
      Not recommended for the post is Atty. Molly Johnson, the only candidate on the Nov. 6 ballot who is not recommended by the bar association. Johnson’s campaign ads suggest she will give child predators a heavy sentence, even though if elected, she would sit in a misdemeanor court.
      “Recommended” ratings were given to candidates J.P. Morgan, Matt Gambrel, A. Ross Douglas and Chris Sammarone.
      Two other county court seats will also be up for election, seats held by Judge Scott Hunter and Judge Joseph Houser. They are unopposed and have received “highly recommended” ratings by the Mahoning County Bar Association.