Down River – Feb. 26, 2015
PCC Running:
Yes, the petition-circulation clock for candidates in Clinton County’s May primary is ticking.
The window for gathering signatures started only last week but the three week sign-up period ends promptly at 5 p.m. Tuesday, March 10.
County voter registration official Maria Boileau says there has been considerable activity in the vicinity of her third floor Garden Building office in Lock Haven. As of earlier this week, she estimates between in-person packet pickups and those mailed out, about a hundred county residents have begun the process to get themselves on the May ballot.
But that number is relatively small, given the number of county municipalities and the number of races within those municipalities. Unfortunately, as is often the case in a county with too many municipalities (29 for a county of less than 40,000 people) and not enough sufficiently interested citizens; many township and borough posts will go without any candidates on the ballot.
It’s the countywide offices, not unexpectedly, drawing the most interest. They pay the most money and most are fulltime, although most row officeholders are not held to any kind of a legally imposed time-clock, as far as we know.
For a recap as we approach the midpoint of the petition-circulating period, let’s see what has been assembled to this point for that May ballot:
County Commissioner, two to be nominated by each party:
So far on the Republican side just the two incumbents, Pete Smeltz and Jeff Snyder; Democrats number three announced and another a possibility: incumbent Joel Long, man-about town Richard Morris and western Clinton County’s Vince Tarantella Sr. have publicly come forward. Former county commissioner Adam Coleman had been seen departing the Garden Building with a nominating petition packet but there has been nothing official from him yet.
A Coleman candidacy would make for an interesting Democratic primary in that Coleman and Long, the two serving four years more or less together a term ago, aren’t exactly enamored of one-another.
It was in May of 2011 Long and Coleman, coming off a first term as majority commissioners, ran neck-and-neck in the Democratic primary, Long with 1,629 votes to Coleman’s 1,623, Les Robinson following with 885 votes. But then came Coleman’s legal woes, from which he was exonerated by a jury in Clinton County Court in July of 2011, but that wasn’t enough to prevent his ballot-box ouster that November. So let’s just say Coleman and Long won’t be signing one-another’s petitions this time around.
Contrast this with the GOP team of Smeltz and Snyder who don’t hesitate to tell all how well they work together, even including minority commissioner Long as part of what they see as a team effort in the commissioners’ office.
District Attorney:
From everything we’re hearing, the primary field is set, former county DA Fred Lingle the lone Republican; local attorneys Paul Ryan, he an appointed assistant DA, and Dave Strouse, he a public defender, seeking the Democratic nomination.
The successful candidate in November will replace Karen Kuebler, she filling the post on an interim basis after the last voter-selected DA, Michael Salisbury, was elected to Common Pleas Court, his term beginning in 2014.
Sheriff:
Five-term sheriff Chuck Ankney is stepping down after this year and so far two candidates, one from each party, have stepped up in the effort to replace him: for the Democrats current deputy Kerry Stover and for the Republicans former security officer Ed Higgins.
Register and Recorder:
Two in to this point: appointed current office holder Republican Jennifer Hoy and for the Democrats Lock Haven University food service administrator Jason Walker.
Prothonotary:
There had been an unwritten rule for some years between county Republican and Democratic officialdom that sitting elected row officers would not be challenged by candidates from the other party. That seems to be holding true so far for prothonotary Marie Vilello, the Democrat elected to her first term in 2011; no word yet of any Republicans seeking to oppose her.
Auditors, three to be elected: These include Democratic incumbents Robert Rooney and Michelle Crowell and Republican Peggy Heller. Former auditor Rita O’Brien has announced she’ll seek one of the two GOP nominations in May.
Keystone Central School Board:
Five of the district’s nine regions will see incumbents up for re-election this time around and so far there has been no word to indicate they won’t seek another term.
These regions and their representatives are: Region 1, Loganton and Greene, Logan and Porter Townships, Wayne Koch; Region 3, Beech Creek Borough, Beech Creek Township and Liberty and Curtin Townships, Greg Strouse; Region Four, Dunnstable, Wayne and Pine Creek Township II, Deborah Smith; Region Six, Allison Township and Lock Haven’s Second and Third Wards, Roger Elling; and Region Eight, Bald Eagle and Castanea Townships and Flemington Borough, Jack Peters.
Only one of those districts, to this point, might see a contested race where Bo Miller of Castanea Township has already announced he’ll be running in Region Eight.
There are plenty of other slots to be filled, from Lock Haven mayor to Allison Township supervisor to Wayne Township supervisor and a ton of slots in-between.
If you’ve ever had the urge to make an attempt to be part of the solution, contact Maria on the third floor of the Garden Building (570-893-4019) and begin the process to sign up. But hurry, the petition-signing clock is ticking.
