On October 19, 2006, Cool Cleveland’s Thomas Mulready interviewed Jimmy Dimora, who was then one of three Cuyahoga County Commissioners and Chairman of the Cuyahoga County Democratic party, and who was recently convicted of racketeering and 32 other corruption related charges.
This segment is part one of a three-part interview. This segment deals with the upcoming 2006 election, in which Dimora was running for re-election.
They discuss Issue 19 on Health & Human Services, the core of the County’s social service function, an issue which passed. They also discuss Issue 18, a cigarette tax which was also passed and became Cuyahoga Arts & Culture, providing $80 million since 2007 to the arts & culture sector in Cuyahoga County.
Also discussed was the controversy with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections and their (in)ability to count ballots, and the supposed oversight by the County Commissioners:
Cool Cleveland: Don’t you have some leadership or control here as a County Commissioner over this Board of Elections to get something done?
Jimmy Dimora: We do have some leverage, with the funding, but we don’t oversee or vote on the purchase of the machines or the actual election process, that’s left up to the director, the deputy director, the staff and personnel…
Cool Cleveland: And they have their own board, right?
Jimmy Dimora: The have their own separate board…
Cool Cleveland: Right, but are you not urging that board to call for (director) Michael Vu’s resignation?
Jimmy Dimora: I think it’s been given already that Michael Vu, after this election, will be gone from the Board of Elections…
The remainder of this interview can be found here:
Click here to view Part Three.