Luzerne County Council elections

The Luzerne County Council is elected by the voters of the county. The governing body consists of eleven members. Nearly half the council is up for election every two years. It rotates between five and six seats. Each council member is elected at-large (to a four-year term). Councilors may serve no more than three consecutive terms.[1]

A map of municipalities in Luzerne County. Each council member represents the entire county.

In the May primary, the major political parties (Democratic and Republican) select their top candidates for the general election. For example, those who place in the top five or six become the nominees of their party. Third party (or independent) candidates may also join the race. In the November general election, all political parties/candidates square off on the same ballot. Those who place in the top five or six will be elected or re-elected to council.

Background

On Tuesday, November 2, 2010, Luzerne County adopted a home rule charter by a margin of 51,413 to 41,639.[2][3] The following year (in 2011), the first election for the new government was held. On Monday, January 2, 2012, the previous government (the board of county commissioners) was abolished and replaced with the new form of government (council–manager government). The first members of the Luzerne County Council were sworn in that same day. The council chair, who is appointed by his or her fellow council members, is both the highest-ranking officer on the council and the head of county government for ceremonial purposes.[4] The first council chair was Jim Bobeck.[5]

Elections

2011

The first general election for Luzerne County Council was held on Tuesday, November 8, 2011. The first eleven members were elected. Initially, the political makeup of council consisted of six Democrats, four Republicans, and one independent. The first councilors were Rick Morelli, Stephen A. Urban, Jim Bobeck, Stephen J. Urban, Tim McGinley, Edward Brominski, Harry Haas, Rick Williams, Elaine Maddon Curry, Linda McClosky Houck, and Eugene Kelleher. Rick Morelli was the highest vote-getter (with 25,026 votes). The newly elected government was sworn in on January 2, 2012. Democrat Jim Bobeck, who came in third during the general election, was appointed by his fellow council members to serve as the first council chair.[5][3]

Seats after the election
Party Number of seats
Democratic 6
Republican 4
Independent 1
Luzerne County general election, 2011
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rick Morelli 25,026 5.25
Democratic Stephen A. Urban 23,657 4.97
Democratic Jim Bobeck 23,412 4.91
Republican Stephen J. Urban 22,598 4.74
Democratic Tim McGinley 21,654 4.54
Democratic Edward A. Brominski 21,630 4.54
Republican Harry Haas 21,299 4.47
Independent Rick Williams 20,359 4.27
Democratic Elaine Maddon Curry 19,593 4.11
Democratic Linda McClosky Houck 19,375 4.07
Republican Eugene L. Kelleher 18,867 3.96
Democratic Eileen M. Sorokas 18,811 3.95
Republican John Ruckno 18,594 3.90
Democratic Jane Walsh-Waitkus 18,419 3.87
Republican Kathleen M. Dobash 17,556 3.68
Democratic Michelle Bednar 17,532 3.68
Democratic Salvatore Licata 16,601 3.48
Republican Blythe H. Evans III 16,261 3.41
Republican William Bill James 15,611 3.28
Republican Joyce Dombroski-Gebhardt 14,723 3.09
Democratic M. Theresa Morcavage 14,299 3.00
Republican Gina Nevenglosky 13,849 2.91
Republican Michael Cabell 12,855 2.70
Libertarian Michael A. Lacey 11,108 2.33
Independent Jeremy Packard 11,095 2.33
Libertarian Tim Mullen 10,770 2.26
American Independent Charlie "Bible Buck" Hatchko 6,309 1.32
Libertarian Brian R. Bergman 3,734 0.78
Write-in 862 0.18
Total votes 476,459 100

2013

The second general election was held on Tuesday, November 5, 2013. Five seats were up for election. Elaine Maddon Curry did not seek re-election. Councilwoman Linda McClosky Houck was the top vote-getter (with 18,980 votes). Eileen Sorokas and Kathy Dobash were both newly elected to council. Eugene Kelleher was the only incumbent to lose his seat in the general election. In the end, the number of seats per political party remained the same—six Democrats, four Republicans, and one independent.[6]

Seats after the election
Party Number of seats
Democratic 6
Republican 4
Independent 1
Luzerne County general election, 2013
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Linda McClosky Houck (incumbent) 18,980 10.18
Democratic Eileen M. Sorokas 18,287 9.81
Republican Kathy Dobash 17,829 9.56
Republican Harry Haas (incumbent) 17,552 9.41
Independent Rick Williams (incumbent) 17,226 9.24
Republican Sue Rossi 17,147 9.20
Democratic Richard "Kick" Heffron 16,929 9.08
Democratic Renee Ciaruffoli Taffera 16,560 8.88
Republican Eugene L. Kelleher (incumbent) 16,339 8.76
Democratic Michael Giamber 15,345 8.23
Republican Paul M. Defabo 13,586 7.29
Write-in 688 0.37
Total votes 186,468 100

2015

The third general election was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2015. Six seats were up for election. Jim Bobeck and Rick Morelli did not seek re-election. During the May primary, Democrat Robert Schnee lost the Democratic nomination, but won the Republican nomination with 384 write-in votes.[7] In the November general election, Robert Schnee and Jane Walsh-Waitkus were both newly elected to council. Even though Schnee won the election as a Republican, he went on to serve as a Democrat. Former Councilman Eugene Kelleher, who lost his seat two years earlier, was elected in 2015. Stephen J. Urban was the only incumbent to lose his seat in the general election.[8]

Seats after the election
Party Number of seats
Democratic 7
Republican 3
Independent 1
Note: Even though Robert W. Schnee won
the general election as a Republican,
he went on to serve as a Democrat.
Luzerne County general election, 2015
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tim McGinley (incumbent) 23,892 10.37
Democratic Edward A. Brominski (incumbent) 21,066 9.14
Democratic Stephen A. Urban (incumbent) 20,967 9.10
Republican Eugene L. Kelleher 20,331 8.82
Democratic Jane Walsh-Waitkus 20,287 8.80
Republican Robert W. Schnee 19,487 8.46
Republican Stephen J. Urban (incumbent) 19,117 8.29
Democratic John Gadomski 18,214 7.90
Democratic Anthony J. Rostock 17,661 7.66
Republican Marc Dixon 17,577 7.63
Republican Ray Gustave 16,491 7.16
Republican Mark A. Rabo 14,898 6.46
Write-in 486 0.21
Total votes 230,474 100

2017

The fourth general election was held on Tuesday, November 7, 2017. Five seats were up for election. Kathy Dobash, Eileen Sorokas, and Rick Williams (the only independent on council) did not seek re-election.[9][10] Sheila Saidman, Matthew Vough, and Chris R. Perry were newly elected to council.[11][12] In the end, the Democratic majority grew from seven seats to eight.

Seats after the election
Party Number of seats
Democratic 8
Republican 3
Luzerne County general election, 2017
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sheila Saidman 21,415 10.92
Democratic Matthew Vough 20,393 10.39
Democratic Linda McClosky Houck (incumbent) 20,380 10.39
Republican Harry Haas (incumbent) 20,328 10.36
Republican Chris R. Perry 20,138 10.26
Republican Stephen J. Urban 19,770 10.08
Democratic Wendy Cominsky 19,375 9.88
Republican Marc Dixon 19,125 9.75
Democratic John Gadomski 18,349 9.35
Republican Gregory S. Wolovich, Jr. 16,631 8.48
Write-in 278 0.14
Total votes 196,182 100

2019

The fifth general election was held on Tuesday, November 5, 2019. Six seats were up for election. Republican Eugene Kelleher and Democrat Stephen A. Urban did not seek re-election. Democratic Councilman Edward Brominski, who was up for re-election that year, resigned in January 2019 due to health issues.[13] By February, the council appointed Patrick Bilbow to serve out the remainder of his term.[14]

During the primary—Tuesday, May 21—the Democrats managed to fill all six nomination slots. The Democratic nominees were Tim McGinley (13,089 votes), Joseph Sebastianelli (11,253 votes), Jane Walsh-Waitkus (11,026 votes), Patrick Bilbow (11,001 votes), Robert Schnee (9,303 votes), and Anup Patel (8,731 votes).[15]

Only four Republicans appeared on the primary ballot. They comfortably secured their party's nomination. The Republican nominees were Stephen J. Urban (9,308 votes), Walter Griffith (8,969 votes), Kendra Radle (8,238 votes), and Gregory Wolovich (7,915 votes).[15] The remaining two nominees were selected through write-in votes.[16] Lee Ann McDermott, with 454 write-in votes, and Councilman Robert Schnee, with 417 write-in votes, filled the two remaining Republican slots. Because Schnee had also won the Democratic nomination, he became the only candidate in council history to appear on the November ballot as both a Democrat and a Republican.[17]

During the November general election, the balance of power shifted for the first time in council history—the Republicans secured a majority. Republicans Lee Ann McDermott, Walter Griffith, and Kendra Radle were newly elected to council. Former Republican Councilman Stephen J. Urban, who lost his seat four years earlier, was also elected. Democrats Patrick Bilbow and Jane Walsh-Waitkus were the only two incumbents to lose their seats. Due to straight-party voting and the fact that he appeared on the ballot as both a Democrat and a Republican, Robert Schnee became the highest vote-getter in council history (with 28,588 votes). He continued serving in government as a Democrat.[18][19][20]

Seats after the election
Party Number of seats
Republican 6
Democratic 5
Note: Even though Schnee secured the
Republican nomination in 2019, he continued
serving in government as a Democrat.
Luzerne County general election, 2019
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic/Republican Robert W. Schnee (incumbent) 28,588 11.02
Republican Lee Ann McDermott 25,752 9.93
Republican Walter L. Griffith, Jr. 24,314 9.37
Republican Stephen J. Urban 24,246 9.35
Democratic Tim McGinley (incumbent) 23,909 9.22
Republican Kendra M. Radle 22,950 8.85
Democratic Joseph C. Sebastianelli 22,622 8.72
Democratic Patrick M. Bilbow (incumbent) 22,263 8.58
Democratic Anup K. Patel 21,575 8.32
Democratic Jane Walsh-Waitkus (incumbent) 21,483 8.28
Republican Gregory S. Wolovich, Jr. 20,931 8.07
Write-in 727 0.28
Total votes 259,360 100

2021

The sixth general election for Luzerne County Council will take place in 2021. The primary is scheduled for Tuesday, May 18, 2021. There will be five Democratic nominees, five Republican nominees, and potentially several independent/third party candidates seeking office. Those who place in the top five during the general election—Tuesday, November 2, 2021—will go on to serve as councilors.

References
  1. The Editorial Board. "Our choices for Luzerne County Council". www.citizensvoice.com.
  2. Voters say 'yes' to home rule - News. Standard Speaker (2010-11-03). Retrieved on 2013-07-23.
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-01-11. Retrieved 2017-10-20.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-02-04. Retrieved 2018-02-12.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. "Luzerne County Council members sworn in - The Times Leader reports" – via www.youtube.com.
  6. "11/05/13 General & Municipal Elections". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Retrieved 2019-09-09.
  7. Buffer, By Michael P. "Schnee, Kelleher win write-in nominations for county council". www.citizensvoice.com.
  8. "Municipal Election 11/03/2015". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Retrieved 2019-09-09.
  9. Wellock, Bill. "Luzerne council seats will be open". www.standardspeaker.com.
  10. Leader, Times (August 16, 2017). "Luzerne County Councilman Rick Williams won't run again". Times Leader.
  11. Leader, Times (December 29, 2017). "Luzerne County Council chairmanship decision Tuesday". Times Leader.
  12. "Municipal Election - November 7, 2017". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Retrieved 2019-09-09.
  13. https://www.timesleader.com/news/729045/luzerne-county-councilman-edward-brominski-resigning
  14. https://www.timesleader.com/news/733911/patrick-bilbow-appointed-to-vacant-luzerne-county-council-seat
  15. https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/PA/Luzerne/95689/Web02.226438/#/
  16. https://www.timesleader.com/news/744812/luzerne-county-council-nominees-selected-mcginley-top-vote-getter
  17. https://www.citizensvoice.com/news/write-ins-decide-council-da-races-1.2488987
  18. https://www.timesleader.com/news/761167/2-incumbents-4-others-win-county-council-seats
  19. "Luzerne County Council At-Large". Our Campaigns. Our Campaigns. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
  20. https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/PA/Luzerne/98370/web/#/summary
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