STRUTHERS — Democrat Ron Carcelli, Struthers 2nd Ward councilman until last week, is officially no longer a candidate for the seat during the upcoming election.

Carcelli sent a letter Monday to the Mahoning County Board of Elections officially withdrawing as a candidate during next Tuesday’s election. The letter doesn’t provide an explanation.

Carcelli’s name will still appear on the ballot because it is too late for the board of elections to remove it. But with his withdrawal, any votes for Carcelli will not count.

Carcelli resigned Oct. 22 from his council seat, citing health issues.

With Carcelli’s withdrawal, only Robert E. Deagan is eligible for the seat as he filed as a write-in candidate.

Deagan would need just one vote as a write-in to win the election representing the 2nd Ward as he was the only person to file with such a designation.

Deagan said he plans to vote for himself and to serve the two-year term.

Deagan initially filed as a Republican for the position, but the board of elections on Feb. 10 refused to certify his candidacy because he failed to put what ward race he was seeking on his nominating petitions. Instead, he just wrote “councilman.”

Deagan was allowed to file for the general election as a write-in candidate because he was disqualified from the primary election and not the general election.

No one else filed for the ward seat.

Before Carcelli’s resignation, an Oct. 14 police report was filed, accusing him of theft in office, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly taking city-owned trash can liners.

The police report, filed by city Park Superintendent Bryan Montgomery, states Carcelli came to the back of the social hall at Mauthe Park, 156 Smithfield St., and asked for trash can liners. Montgomery told a police officer that he gave Carcelli two rolls of 55-gallon trash can liners, each containing 18 bags.

Montgomery told a police officer “he was unaware Carcelli was not permitted at the hall without just cause, per the Struthers city administration” and he “thought due to Carcelli being a city councilman it was OK for him to give Carcelli the can liners.”

The decision to pursue a criminal charge was left up to city council. The issue was briefly discussed at the Oct. 22 meeting, but it appears the matter has been dropped.

Carcelli was first elected in 2017 to city council and won reelection three times to two-year terms.

Before that, he served eight years on the Struthers school board and lost the 2015 Democratic primary for mayor.