WARREN — Although local voters picked the Republican candidates for president, in a Trumbull County commissioners race and in other races, the Democratic candidate for coroner eked out a victory by a 1.82 percent margin.

In the race, which drew 92,320 voters, between the county’s deputy coroner, Democrat Dr. Lawrence D’Amico, and Republican Dr. Larry Woods, 50.91 percent voted for D’Amico. The difference in the race was 1,674 votes, according to unofficial and incomplete results from the Trumbull County Board of Elections. The board is expected to certify the results of the election on Wednesday.

Trumbull County Coroner Dr. Thomas James did not seek re-election. He was appointed to the position in 2018 when Dr. Humphrey Germaniuk, a Democrat, died in office.

D’Amico, 58, of Warren, was selected by James as deputy coroner and is a surgeon with D’Amico Patchen Surgery Inc, with active affiliations with Trumbull Regional Medical Center and St. Joseph Warren Hospital. Woods, 71, also of Warren, is a self-practicing cardiologist and intensive care specialist who has worked for Mercy Health and Trumbull Regional Medical Center, most recently.

D’Amico won in Warren, Niles, Girard, Hubbard City, Howland, Liberty, McDonald and Warren Township, by large margins in some of the county’s most populated areas, though his margins in Howland were just 2.4 percent, or just 222 votes. Woods prevailed in the 25 other communities in Trumbull County. He won soundly in Cortland, Bazetta and Champion, though Weathersfield was a closer call with Woods taking 51.5 percent of the vote, and in Newton Falls, where he received 51.7 percent.

Woods won by a large margin in the other communities that picked him, especially in the county’s more rural areas, but those areas have fewer voters than the areas D’Amico won.

D’Amico said his experience as deputy coroner has prepared him to move into the position of coroner, and said his experience as a general and trauma surgeon in the county, treating wounds like gunshots, stabbings, drownings and other accidents over the last 26 years has prepared him for the type of work a coroner does.

As coroner, D’Amico said he wants to upgrade computer software for a more modern way to report and collect data, support programs that address suicide and opioid use disorder, and continue a close relationship with law enforcement and emergency services.

“Suicide and opioid addiction are two troublesome problems related to the coroner’s office. I plan to lend the coroner’s office’s support to already established community programs related to opioid addiction and suicide prevention,” D’Amico said before the election. “We see a lot of deaths from suicide and overdoses, and I want to put our office in the position to add education programs to decrease these numbers.”

rfox@tribtoday.com