Two area businessmen have combined forces to run a joint campaign for Shawnee Township Trustees in this year's election. Michael Ayers and Keith Cunningham are two long-time residents of Shawnee Township. When approached by friends and neighbors with the idea to run for trustees, the two agreed and decided on a collaborative campaign. The pair is looking to fill both trustee seats up for grabs in November.
Ayers is a photographer and Cunningham is a former Lima City Council President and Allen County Board of Elections Director. While the two have different backgrounds, they believe their individual skill sets will benefit them in their campaign.
"Michael and I have known each other for a long time. We have a lot of shared ideas and shared visions for the future of the township," says Cunningham. "While our names will appear separately on the ballot, there is no reason for us to compete with each other and run a campaign against one another. So, we are running a campaign together to hopefully bring those ideas and visions to the township."
"We believe in this township and we think that some of the things that are happening need to be corrected and added to and see some great things coming down the pipe," Ayers explains. "We are going to have to carve out a little bit of time to make sure we have the time to do this properly, but it's worth it. Shawnee is a great place to live, it's a great township, great people, and we want to see it succeed."
As of now, Ayers and Cunningham are the only two on the ballot. Other candidates have until August 4th to file for the trustee job. A full list of offices and candidates filed so far is available on the Allen County Board of Elections website at allen.boe.ohio.gov.
