Voters in Nelsonville, a small city in south-eastern Ohio, backed sweeping changes to local government in a referendum in November 2024.

City councillors subsequently attempted to repeal the changes, prompting a legal challenge which remains ongoing.

An election took place under the new system of local government in November 2025, and the mayor and councillors elected have since sought to present themselves as the sole legitimate city council.

The newly-elected administration has called on the local police force to hand them the keys to the city hall.

In a letter to the police chief, mayor-elect Jonathan Flowers said: “Your continued refusal to allow the duly elected government to function constitutes an unlawful interference with my office and a deprivation of rights under color of law.”

A legal resolution is now more likely than a political solution, local TV channel WOUB reports.