Contested District Magistrate Races Highlight Petition Filing Deadline

LOCK HAVEN — Tuesday was the last day for candidates to file to be on the Clinton County primary ballot this May and county voter registrar Maria Boileau said her Garden Building office was busy all day but there was no last minute deluge of petition-carrying candidates.

There will be 225 ballot slots at stake May 16, but only 166 county residents filed the required petitions; 83 Democrats did so, and so did another 83 Republicans.

Two incumbent district judges will be challenged in the primary: Lock Haven area district magistrate Joseph Sanders III will be opposed by Lock Haven police chief Keith Kibler; in the Renovo area incumbent Frank Mills will be challenged by Eric Ditty, a rematch from 2011. All have cross-filed, which means those contests could be decided in May. Incumbent Mill Hall area magistrate John Maggs has no opposition.

There will be two contested Keystone Central School Board seats: Renovo area representataive/board president Butch Knauff has opposition in Eric Probert; and Lock Haven’s hill district, the fourth and fifth wards, will see William Mincer challenge incumbent Roger Elling. Incumbent Albert Jones is unopposed in the Woodward Township area region and no one has filed to to run to replace Tom Shafer, the Mill Hall/Lamar Township board member who is not seeking re-election.

The primary will serve to line up the November finalists for one county row office. Michelle Kunes is the incumbent treasurer, unopposed on the Republican ballot. Current county auditor Michelle Crowell will be unopposed on the Democratic ballot for treasurer. First term county coroner Zach Hanna is unopposed for the Democratic nomination and no Republicans filed to run for that party’s nomination.

There will be a contested Lock Haven city council race on the Democratic side. It is a two-year term, the seat presently occupied by Jonathan Bravard; he will be opposed by Richard Morris in May.

And a race for the mayor of Renovo is in the offing: incumbent Republican Carl Olshefskie is running for re-election. Democratic council member Tom Tarantella Jr. is seeking his party’s nomination to oppose Olshefskie in November.