Pennsylvania voters will head to the polls on Tuesday for a primary election that includes key municipal races across the Lehigh Valley. They will choose Republican and Democratic candidates to appear on the November ballot for mayor, city council, school board, judges, county executive and more.
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In Allentown and Bethlehem, Democrats will likely choose their next mayor. There are no Republicans running in either race. In the Democratic primary, Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk faces a challenge from city Councilman Ed Zucal, who last week also launched a write-in campaign as a Republican. In Bethlehem, incumbent Democrat J. William Reynolds is facing a challenge from city council member Grace Crampsie Smith.
Two Republicans — Mike Welsh and Roger MacLean — are facing off in the primary for Lehigh County executive, while Democrat Josh Siegel, who represents part of the city in the state House, is running unopposed. County executive Democrat Phil Armstrong is prevented by the county Home Rule Charter from seeking a third consecutive term. There are no primary contests for Lehigh County commissioner.
There is a contested Democratic primary in Northampton County for executive, as well. County Controller Tara Zrinski is facing off against Amy Cozze. County Councilman Tom Giovanni in the Republican primary. Instead of seeking another term, incumbent county Executive Democrat Lamont McClure announced plans to run for Congress to represent Pennsylvania’s 7th District, which is currently held by Republican Ryan Mackenzie. That primary and general election will be in 2026.
This municipal year election could have larger than usual implications for voters. Local elected officials make decisions on everything from garbage collection and street repairs to building new parks, operating the judicial system and providing services to senior citizens. School boards weigh in on tax rates, curriculum, class size and extracurriculars.
Sample ballots for Northampton County can be found here. Lehigh County ballots can be found here.
VOTING
Only Democrats and Republicans can vote in the primary for their respective party candidates.
To find out if you are registered to vote, click here. To find your polling place, click here.
Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Mail-in ballots must be received by 8 p.m. as well.
Not all drop boxes are open until 8 p.m. on Election Day. To check locations and hours for drop boxes, click here for the five locations in Lehigh County and here for the seven locations in Northampton County.
If you haven’t gotten around to filling out your mail-in ballot by Election Day, you can bring your uncompleted ballot to your polling place, surrender it and sign a declaration to vote.
If you forget to bring your uncompleted ballot to the polls, you can vote provisionally – meaning your vote won’t be tallied until verified.
Help for voting issues:
If you are registered to vote but denied the right to vote today, you can call the Election Protection Hotline at the following numbers:
English: 1-866-687-8683
Spanish: 1-888-839-8682
Arabic: 1-844-925-5287
For Bengali, Cantonese, Hindi, Urdu, Korean, Mandarin, Tagalog, or Vietnamese: 1-888-274-8683
A LOOK AT KEY RACES AND OUR COVERAGE
LEHIGH COUNTY
COUNTY EXECUTIVE
Democrat
Josh Siegel (Read our story here)
Republican
Roger MacLean (Read our story here)
Mike Welsh (Read our story here)
Debate shows kindred views in GOP race for Lehigh County executive
Ex police chief, business owner square off in GOP primary for Lehigh County executive
JUDGE OF THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS
Democrat
Mark Stanziola
Jenna Fliszar
Patricia Fuentes Mulqueen
Republican
Jenna Fliszar
Patricia Fuentes Mulqueen
Three candidates are running for a newly created seat in Lehigh County Court
Spending in Lehigh judicial race surpasses $67,000
ALLENTOWN MAYOR
Democrat
Matt Tuerk (Incumbent)
Ed Zucal
Allentown mayor faces challenger in Democratic primary
Democrats Tuerk, Zucal face off in only Allentown mayoral debate
Tuerk holds fundraising advantage over Zucal in Allentown mayoral Democratic primary
ALLENTOWN CITY COUNCIL (Vote for four)
Democrat
Luis Acevedo (write-in candidate)
Jeremy Binder
Daryl L. Hendricks (Incumbent)
Cynthia Mota (Incumbent)
Patrick Palmer
Cristian Pungo
Natalie Santos (Incumbent)
Ben Stemrich
Seven Democrats running for Allentown City Council’s four open seats
BETHLEHEM MAYOR
Democrat
J. William Reynolds (Incumbent)
Grace Crampsie Smith
In Bethlehem, friction defines mayoral race
Campaign costs in Bethlehem mayoral race top $95,000
Opposition mailers target Reynolds, Kwiatek candidacies in Bethlehem
BETHLEHEM CITY COUNCIL (Vote for four)
Democrat
Justin Amann
Tina Cantelmi
Jo Daniels
Celeste Dee
Hillary Kwiatek (Incumbent)
Rachel Leon (Incumbent)
Republican
Joseph F. Poplawski
SCHOOL BOARD RACES
Seven in running for East Penn School Board
In Southern Lehigh, seven candidates running for four seats
Six in running for four seats on Parkland School Board
NORTHAMPTON COUNTY
JUDGE OF THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS
Democrat
Jeremy Clark
Robert Eyer
Republican
James Fuller
Jeremy Clark
Robert Eyer
Clark, Eyer major contributors to their Norco judicial campaigns
Three lawyers vie to become Northampton County judge
COUNTY EXECUTIVE
Democrat
Amy Cozze (Read our profile here)
Tara Zrinski (Read our profile here)
Republican
Tom Giovanni (Read our profile here)
Norco executive candidates Zrinski, Cozze clash at debate
Tara Zrinski starts Norco executive campaign with Lamont McClure’s endorsement
Norco executive candidates Cozze, Zrinski share passion for public service but highlight differences
Northampton County GOP candidates introduce themselves
NORTHAMPTON COUNTY COUNCIL (Vote for five)
Democrat
Jason Boulette
Patti Bruno (write-in candidate)
Theresa Fadem
Lori Vargo Heffner (Incumbent)
David Holland
Nadeem Qayyum
Republican
John Brown (Incumbent)
Daniel Campo
Sam Elias
John Goffredo (Incumbent)
Juan Martinez
Six Democrats seek five spots on Norco County Council primary ballot
EASTON CITY COUNCIL – CONTESTED RACES
DISTRICT 1
Democrat
Frank Graziano III
Roger Ruggles (Incumbent)
DISTRICT 3
Democrat
Susan Hartranft-Bittinger
Taiba Sultana (Incumbent)
Two Easton City Council districts have Democratic primary battles
SCHOOL BOARD RACES
Other races on the ballot include more local school board races, borough and township positions and statewide elections for judges on the Superior and Commonwealth courts.