Schmidt tripped up by another elections complaint

The Ohio Elections Commission will hear three complaints against U.S. Rep. Jean Schmidt during a probable cause hearing on Aug. 24.

Schmidt, a Republican from Miami Township, received a public reprimand from the state elections commission in April for making "false statements," claiming she had a second undergraduate degree from the University of Cincinnati which she never received.

The latest complaints, filed Friday by Nathan J. Noy, an independent candidate for the 2nd Congressional District seat, allege Schmidt lied about various athletic accomplishments including how often and/or well she ran in marathons in Boston, Columbus and Xenia.

Barry Bennett, Schmidt's chief of staff, said, "This is just crazy,'' offering to show a reporter Schmidt's 60 marathon medals.

Bennett said he surprised the elections commission even takes such complaints, adding, "This commission is so broken, it's ridiculous. Lord knows what the commission will do.''

Noy's complaints say Schmidt and her staff misled voters on her campaign web site, news interviews, press releases and elsewhere.

The complaints also name Bennett, Schmidt's husband and campaign treasurer, Peter Schmidt, and web site managers Tim Billies of Amelia and Eric Kephas.

One complaint alleges a photo on Schmidt's web site -- purportedly from the October 1993 Columbus Marathon -- is fabricated or misleading.

A Columbus Dispatch article announcing the top finishers in that race did not include Schmidt. (However, as regular runners know, if you unofficially hop in a race without paying the entry fee, you would not be listed among the official finishers.)

A second complaint alleges that Schmidt is misleading voters by claiming a 2nd place finish in the Xenia Marathon in April 2002, when she wasn't listed among the top women finishers.

Schmidt's campaign web site has since been revised. It now reads: "Xenia Marathon, 2003, 2nd place female overall (Previously listed as 2002-This was a typographical error.) Please click here for the results."

A third complaint claims Schmidt has misrepresented how many times she ran the Boston marathon on her biography, news articles and Internet web sites.

"She's qualified every year since 1991,'' Bennett said. "I've got seven medals."

Bennett said Schmidt often runs with the Leukemia Society's Team in Training and can provide witnesses to her marathon feats.

During her primary race this spring, a unanimous Elections Commission voted to issue Schmidt a public reprimand for "false statements."

A letter citing the campaign's "reckless disregard for truth" was sent by the commission to Schmidt and her husband, Peter, as committee treasurer. It's the most serious punishment short of fines or criminal prosecution.