Auditor hopefuls have war of words: Republicans miffed at each other’s claims

How many auditors are running for state auditor? One too many for the two Republicans seeking their party's nomination.

State Rep. Seth Morgan, R-Huber Heights, fired off a letter to his opponent, Delaware County Prosecutor Dave Yost, to set him straight about what it means to be an auditor.

Morgan, a certified public accountant, is miffed because Yost has claimed on his Web site and in campaign literature to be "the ONLY auditor in the race." Yost served as Delaware County auditor from 1999 to 2003.

Morgan notes that as a certified public accountant he is trained and certified to perform financial audits. "You are not a CPA and your qualifications would not allow you under the Ohio law to perform financial audits in the private sector. You served in that elective capacity at one time but you are not currently in that office nor are you trained to be a financial auditor," Morgan wrote in a letter Monday to Yost.

The references had been removed from Yost's Web site Tuesday and instead, he claimed to be "the only candidate in the race who has actually served as a public auditor."

In a written response to Morgan, Yost's campaign manager Brent Swander said text on the candidate's Web site "has been altered in order to highlight Dave Yost's award-winning experience as a county auditor."

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