WARREN — Dan Polivka, who lost the 2022 election for Trumbull County Democratic Party chairman to Mark Alberini, said he is considering a run for the seat he previously held for 12 years.

Polivka said he hasn’t made a final decision, but “many have encouraged me to run that aren’t happy with the dismantling and direction, lack of effective fundraising, not fielding candidates in (a number of) races, no written notification other than email to precinct committee (members) about filing this year,” which led to several write-in candidates and empty seats.

Of the 212 precinct committee seats on the May 5 ballot, Democrats didn’t have candidates in 61 races. Republicans also didn’t have candidates in 61 of their 212 precinct committee races.

Polivka also mentioned Trumbull Democrats lost every contested election to Republican candidates in the 2022 and 2024 elections under Alberini’s leadership.

Alberini beat Polivka 64-53 on June 7, 2022, for Democratic chairman.

A meeting to elect a chairman hasn’t been scheduled yet, but Alberini said it will be in early June.

As for Polivka’s potential challenge, Alberini said, “Spoken from a guy we haven’t seen in four years. If he chooses to run, Dan has been nonexistent and nonsupportive in helping Democratic candidates.”

Alberini also pointed to Polivka’s election record.

While Polivka served 12 years as party chairman, Alberini beat him in 2022. Before that, Polivka spent 16 years as a county commissioner before losing the November 2020 election to Republican Niki Frenchko.

Polivka won the 2024 Democratic primary for commissioner, but lost the general election to Republican Rick Hernandez. Polivka lost the 2025 Democratic primary for president of Warren City Council to John Brown, who finished last in the 2024 Democratic primary for county commissioner.

Alberini said: “If you can’t get yourself elected, how can you get other people elected?”

In addition to losing every contested race in the 2022 and 2024 elections, Democrats failed to field candidates for the 64th Ohio House seat, county probate court judge and common pleas general division judge. Also, no Democrats filed for either seat on the 11th District Court of Appeals, which takes in five counties, including Trumbull.

Alberini pointed out that starting with the 2022 election, the Republican-controlled state Legislature required party affiliation for court of appeals judges “for positions that shouldn’t be political.”

Democrats didn’t have a candidate for common pleas court judge because incumbent Cynthia Rice decided only days before the filing deadline to switch political affiliation from Democratic to Republican, Alberini said.

Alberini said when Rice “jumped ship, it left us with no recourse because of how she delayed it.” Rice quit the race shortly after filing as a Republican.

Alberini said: “We looked at probate and the (64th) House and went through extensive recruiting and vetting. I refuse to put a warm, unqualified body up there just for the sake of running. That might be OK with some people, but it’s not with me.”

The county used to be a long-time Democratic stronghold that switched largely thanks to the rise in popularity of Republican Donald Trump, who won three straight presidential elections in Trumbull starting in 2016. Democrats currently occupy just two county executive branch positions: prosecutor and coroner. No Republicans filed for those seats in 2024.

Alberini said: “Dan has not figured out that post-2016, things are very, very, very different. You don’t just put a D behind your name and get elected. Add in the blatant gerrymandering” by Republicans to state legislative and congressional seats. “If Polivka feels that somehow him being in that chairmanship position would have changed anything, I don’t think that would be the case whatsoever.”

Alberini said he initially planned to serve one four-year term as chairman “to right the ship and get this straightened out after 12 years of Dan’s leadership. I’ve found that four years isn’t enough time to change the trajectory and success of our party.”