Boccieri names chief of staff

U.S. Rep-elect John Boccieri has hired Anthony Trevena, who’s worked for Ted Strickland in a various capacities, as his chief of staff.

Trevena, of Guilford Lake in Columbiana County, took a leave of absence from his job as deputy director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources about three months ago to work on Boccieri’s successful congressional campaign.

While Trevena said he “loved” his job at ODNR, the opportunity to run the congressional office of his close friend Boccieri is an opportunity he couldn’t refuse.

Boccieri, a Democrat from Alliance, captured the 16th Congressional District seat in the Nov. 4 election with 55.3 percent of the vote defeating Republican Kirk Schuring.

Boccieri and Trevena are close friends dating back to 2000 when both were running for seats in the Ohio House.

Trevena finished second in a four-man Democratic primary, losing by just 334 votes. Boccieri, then of New Middletown, won a three-man Democratic primary for a different House seat by 74 votes.

For the complete story, read Wednesday’s Vindicator or Vindy.com