NELSONVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) -- With early voting underway to decide whether Nelsonville should abolish its city charter, an appeals court will hear arguments over whether the issue is even legally valid. Issue 23 is a citizen-led ballot initiative petitioning to dissolve the city charter and revert to the form of government Nelsonville had 30 years ago. The movement came after several tumultuous years in city government, full of lawsuits, resignations and infighting. Now, the city itself is in a legal fight with citizens asking a state court to establish proper procedures for abolishing a charter. Nelsonville is arguing the charter must be abolished through standards set at the state level, and citizens behind the initiative are arguing the ballot initiative is an acceptable form of abolishment per the charter. City Attorney Jonathan Robe said the case will be heard Thursday morning at the Pickaway County Courthouse in Circleville. What to know about Ohio's U.S. Senate race Robe said the panel of three judges will debate among themselves after oral arguments. He could not say when a ruling would come but that the timing and pretrial efforts indicate a judgment could be issued before Election Day on Nov. 5. “We’d like to be able to get the court of appeals ruling before the election to, again, provide some clarity and some answers to these questions,” Robe said. The issue is on the ballot as a late addition after a judge ordered Nelsonville City Council to send it to the Athens County Board of Elections. The board decided to place it on the ballot on Sept. 27 even though overseas ballots had already been mailed out. Tony Brooks, the deputy director of the county elections board, said the ballots were reprinted. Overseas voters received notice they should not vote on the first ballot, and replacements were sent the following day. “If they return both, we will only count the second ballot that was sent,” Brooks said. If Issue 23 passes, Nelsonville's form of government would be a statutory one, or one that defaults to the Ohio Revised Code. With this, most city positions would be elected and the city would be overseen by an elected mayor rather than an appointed city manager. From January to May 2023, Nelsonville had six city managers. What to know about the candidates in central Ohio U.S. House races The current one, Tom Cangemi, has been on paid administrative leave since July 29 for allegations of misconduct. Nelsonville has continued to pay his $80,000 salary while paying Police Chief and acting City Manager Devon Tolliver a $2,500 monthly stipend for his dual role. The city is also paying an attorney $350 an hour to investigate Cangemi. “I’d like to know where we stand with our city manager,” Nelsonville resident Stu Brooks said in an Oct. 7 council meeting. “I think you’re playing into what the citizens are kind of wanting going back to a mayor because as citizens, we haven’t been told anything.”  According to police records, Cangemi was placed on leave the day that City Service Director Jason Coen filed a police report alleging Cangemi threatened and harassed him. The incident was also recorded on Coen's phone, and the pair can be heard yelling, cussing and accusing one another of issuing threats. The footage, obtained by NBC4, lasts roughly an hour and 45 minutes and contains extensive arguing over comments Coen allegedly made about Cangemi and debating who could be trusted in government. According to the police report, Cangemi initiated a handshake in which he pulled Coen forward with such force that Coen had to steady himself on the desk. The police report said it was “well known to all staff” that Coen had recently undergone bicep surgery on that arm and the incident reversed his progress. “Small town politics are worse than Washington D.C.,” Cangemi, who also works for FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security, said in the recording. Before Ashville ‘vicious’ dog killings, owners received a history of legal action and warnings Cangemi is just one of many city officials running through a political revolving door in Nelsonville. Since last November’s election, 10 councilmembers and two city attorneys have served, sometimes simultaneously. The city's first resignation happened just 22 days into January, with Greg Smith recusing himself from council presidency before resigning weeks later. Smith had previously been removed from council four times and engaged in numerous lawsuits against the city. Weeks before his resignation, he received a $70,000 settlement in one of the cases on the condition he not sue the city again. Nevertheless, Smith is a plaintiff in the ballot initiative lawsuit. Nelsonville is involved in several ongoing lawsuits -- on top of the charter issue -- involving former city employees. Former city attorney Garry Hunter is alleging he's owed over $260,000 for unpaid legal services. Two former employees, including the councilmember who replaced Smith as president, sued alleging they are being denied their rightful seats on council. That case is awaiting action in the Ohio Supreme Court. Those issues and others helped to spur the ballot initiative. However, not everyone believes removing the charter will solve Nelsonville's problems. “Corruption isn’t by the type of government you have. Corruption is by the people. The problem is council,” Nelsonville resident Sue Powell said at an Oct. 14 council meeting. “The problem is the mistakes and the decisions, and we have a four-member clique.” What does a 'yes' or 'no' vote mean for Issue 1? Per the ballot language, the new form of government would be enacted January 2026, with elections occurring in November 2025. Robe pointed out that nominating petitions for candidates would be due in early August 2025, leaving only nine months for City Council to do an overhaul of procedures and prepare for a charter-free system. Robe also cautioned voters about Nelsonville's vulnerable city status. After the 2020 census, Nelsonville was downgraded from a city to a village because it had fewer than 5,000 residents. City Auditor Taylor Sappington suspected a miscount and organized a new tally, presenting it to the Ohio Secretary of State and successfully regaining city status. Had Sappington failed, Nelsonville leadership assured citizens they would retain some protections because of their charter. “Let’s say 2030 comes around, the federal census says Nelsonville’s at 4,200. We appeal, it gets denied by the state. If the charter’s still in place, as a matter of charter law, this will still be the city of Nelsonville, and the state can’t change that,” Robe said. “If it gets switched to a statutory city, then just as a matter of law it will get downgraded to a village, and there’s nothing that can be done at that point.” Whether or not a decision is made before Election Day, Robe said it is realistic that the case could continue in appeals until it reaches the Ohio Supreme Court. As is, Nelsonville residents can vote on the ballot initiative via early voting or at their polling location on Nov. 5.