When results from the Nov. 8 election are tallied, Akron City Council could end up with no female representation.It’s more likely that council will have one or two women, but even that would be significantly fewer than the four out of 13 seats women claimed from 2007 until last year.The shift concerns some, including Kelli Crawford, the Ward 10 representative who chose not to run for re-election this year because of her new job with FirstEnergy Solutions. Many expect her replacement will be Garry Moneypenny, a fellow Democrat who formerly held the ward seat but also happens to be a man.Crawford, who, at 26, was the youngest woman on council when she was elected in 2007 to take over for Moneypenny, has tried to encourage young people and women to get involved in politics, including through the Summit County Young Democrats.“It’s unfortunate that the women of Akron will be so blatantly underrepresented,” she said, alluding to how women make up 52 percent of Akron’s population. “We as women need to look at how to recruit and retain more women.”The waning representation of women on council is one of the highlights of the Akron City Council races in the Nov. 8 election. Others include the first official third-party candidate vying for a seat and the potential shift in the balance of power on council with at least four — and potentially five — new members.(The possible fifth would come if Councilwoman-at-Large Linda Omobien, whose council seat is not up for election this year, wins her race for Akron Municipal Court clerk. If she wins the clerk’s job, her replacement could further deplete the number of women on council.)The council races this year didn’t pique as much interest as the contests two years ago, with three seats — Wards 3, 4 and 5 — uncontested in both the primary and general election. Still, the primary saw two longtime incumbents — Tina Merlitti and Bob Otterman — defeated, and Marilyn Keith, the wife of former Councilman and current council Clerk Bob Keith, win a hard-fought race in Ward 8. New members could mean change for a council facing big challenges in the coming year, including continued budget constraints and a depleted police force, coupled with concerns about safety.Shortage of womenThe reasons for the falling female representation on council are women being defeated, not seeking re-election and assuming or trying for another office.Since 2009, Renee Greene and Tina Merlitti have lost ward races; Terry Albanese, who had represented Ward 6, narrowly was defeated in her bid for an at-large council seat; Sandra Kurt assumed a Summit County Council seat; Crawford chose not to run for re-election; and Omobien decided to run for municipal court clerk.Greene, Merlitti, Albanese and Kurt all were (or will be) replaced by men.Of the 18 candidates competing for the 10 ward seats in the Nov. 8 election, 15 are men. Two of the women are Republicans — Amy Page in Ward 9 and Laura Ashbury in Ward 10 — who are considered underdogs against the male candidates in those races.That leaves Keith, whom many expect to defeat GOP candidate David Sutter in the Ward 8 contest.But if Sutter beats Keith and Omobien wins the clerk’s race, there would be no women on council.Council President Marco Sommerville, who represents Ward 3 and faces no opposition this year, said he likes to see diversity on council because people of different races and sexes offer diverse perspectives. But, he said, the representation will fluctuate back and forth. He said what he thinks is most important is a commitment to serve.“We’re just looking for good people. Period,” he said. “Women, men, black, white, Asian, gay, straight. It’s people who have the best interest of the city at heart.”Sommerville said the need for more female voices might be a consideration if any seats come open in the future.Libertarian runningIndependents have run in the past for Akron council, but never with a third-party designation beside their name.That will change in the coming election, with Kurtis Liston, a Libertarian, trying for the Ward 1 seat that Democrat Jim Hurley holds. Mark LaVoie, a Republican, also is on the ballot, making Ward 1 the only three-way race.Third-party candidates earned ballot access, with party labels, in Ohio through a court case in 2006. They have won offices in other states, but still face an uphill battle in communities where voters have a preference for one of the two major parties, said John Green, director of the University of Akron’s Bliss Institute of Applied Politics.“A lot of minor-party candidates are very issue-oriented,” he said. “They often run for different offices. They want to try to get their ideas out.”Liston, who heads the Libertarian Party in Summit County and ran for the state legislature last year, would push for allowing gay marriage and legalizing and taxing marijuana, which he thinks could help ease Akron’s financial woes.“The money is drying up,” he said. “We need to look at new ways of doing things. I believe in small, streamlined government and maximum freedom.”Power struggleRegardless of who wins, Akron council’s lineup will change.New members will represent Wards 6, 7, 8 and 10. If Omobien becomes clerk, there would be a fifth new member.Keith and Moneypenny, the front-runners for the Ward 8 and 10 seats, respectively, probably would side with the majority on council, who are generally supportive of Mayor Don Plusquellic and his ideas. It’s less clear where Bob Hoch and Donnie Kammer, who defeated incumbents in the primary and are expected to win the Ward 6 and 7 seats, would side.Councilman-at-large Mike Williams, who waged a tough campaign but failed to defeat Plusquellic in the mayoral primary, celebrated Hoch’s and Kammer’s victories in his concession speech, predicting there would be “ new members of council who are prepared to change how we function.”Hoch said he’s “not a rebel” but would ask questions and vote no if he didn’t agree with a proposal.“I’m not going in there to think I’m going to change things and make them completely different than they are,” he said. “I just want to make sure things are right. That’s all.”Kammer said he would “have an independent voice because that’s what people are looking for.”“One time, I might side with somebody,” he said. “Another time, I might not. Whatever’s in the best interest of the people … We’ll just have to see how that works out.”Sommerville, who hasn’t met with Hoch and Kammer, isn’t overly concerned about a power shift.“Whatever we need to adjust, we will make adjustments,” he said. “I think most have the best interest of the city in mind. If they have their own interests, they will be weeded out.”Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705 or swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com.