Democrats Amy Cozze and Tara Zrinski stated their case during a debate Wednesday night on why voters should choose them as their party’s nominee for Northampton County executive, often clashing over their experience in public service, worthiness to serve and commitment to the office.
Zrinski said her experience as the county’s current controller and six years as a county commission qualify her to be the next county executive.
“On county council, I've delivered real results,” she said in her opening statement.
As a member of county council, she said she helped deliver “$18 million in covid relief to small businesses and nonprofits. I helped keep Gracedale [nursing home] county owned. I cut taxes and put $36 million back into taxpayers’ pockets. I invested in affordable housing projects in Forks and in Glendon, and I preserved 2,400 acres of open space and 50 new farms since 2018. As controller, I fought for fair compensation for my staff, created more transparency and have moved towards automating the audit process.”
Cozze touted the two years she spent as county’s elections director before becoming in 2022 an aide to U.S. Sen. Bob Casey until he was voted out last year.
“I spent my career in and around government, building partnerships, negotiating contracts, managing complex systems, and delivering for people,” she said. “I understand how to work across agencies, jurisdictions and party lines to get things done. … I know what it takes to protect assets like Gracedale and Meals on Wheels, to negotiate fair union contracts that reduce turnover and to bring in federal and state funding that we deserve.”
Then she referenced Zrinski’s frequent election campaigns. Besides successfully running for county council twice, Zrinski had an unsuccessful run for state Senate in 2022 as a county commissioner, a successful election in 2023 to become county controller and now a campaign for the executive's post midway through her term.
“This race is about who can actually govern, not who can … jump from office to office. I'm not doing this because I need a job. I'm not doing this because I need a title bump. I'm doing this because I care deeply about people. I care about the people who live and work in Northampton County, and I know I can lead with competence, compassion, and accountability from day one.”
To see more photos from the debate, click here.
Zrinski defended her runs for office, saying she wants to serve the public the best she can. The executive’s position opened up unexpectedly when Executive Lamont McClure chose not to seek reelection to a third term. He recently declared his candidacy for the 7th Congressional District seat in 2026.
“I had every intention of keeping that promise of finishing as county controller and even running again [for another term],” she said. “I do love the position, but when Lamont stepped down, I felt that I was the most prepared, the most experienced in the county, and I was asked by so many people to run. I felt that I had a responsibility and a duty to my county to run for this office.”
McClure was the first to endorse Zrinski when she announced her candidacy in January.
The debate, before a crowd of about 75 people in the PBS 39 studio in Bethlehem, was moderated by LehighValleyNews.com reporters Tom Shortell and Ryan Gaylor. Shortell mentioned that Tom Giovanni, the only Republican county executive candidate on the May 20 primary ballot, was invited to the debate but declined.
Cozze and Zrinski clashed over several points during the hour-long debate:
— On auditing a reported $5 million missing in the Gracedale budget. Cozze said the controller’s office could not conduct an emergency audit at council’s request before the primary. Zrinski countered, saying her office could not complete the audit in the requested 20 days. It's not feasible,” she said, adding her staff is working on a different major audit.
— On Northampton County receiving $8 million out of a requested $50 million in federal grants: Zrinski blamed Cozze for not not helping the county as Casey’s aide. “So if your job was to bring the money to the county, and yet you say that you deliver, where's the money?” Zrinski asked. Cozze responded, “They didn't reach out to me to help them make [their applications] more competitive and make their applications actually stand out. In fact, they ignored my offers of help.”
— On county voting machine problems in 2023: Zrinski blamed Cozze because of policies she established before leaving the elections job.
In the November 2023 election, county voting machines switched yes and no votes for state judicial retention candidates on printouts reviewed by voters. That caused the county to suspend using the machines for a few hours that morning, during which it was determined the machines tabulated the votes correctly, despite the discrepancy on the printouts. While use of the machines was suspended, some polling places ran out of emergency paper ballots – they had only 25 – and some were told to leave and return later.
“I know that some of the policies that my opponent created actually contributed to the 2023 [problems],” Zrinski said. “The fact that we only had 25 emergency ballots at the polling locations prevented the poll workers from being able to have people vote. Now, those poll workers were also turning individuals away. … This is a training protocol, but these are some of the things that were left in place.”
Cozze: “Nothing she just said is true. There was no ballot policy about how many ballots needed to go to each poll location. That's something the election director determined every single election.”
In closing statements, the candidates reinforced their messages.
Zrinski: “What truly sets me apart from my opponent is my proven record of delivering for Northampton County, especially when it matters most.. Whether it was covid relief to small businesses, addressing the needs of the residents at the [county Housing Authority’s] Oliver C. Border House … putting $36 million of tax relief in the pockets of working families, I have had to be accountable for every single vote I've ever cast. And the fact remains that my opponent has never had to cast a vote.”
Cozze: “To be clear, I did deliver tens of millions of dollars to Northampton County, but they went directly to municipalities, nonprofits and businesses. In a race like this, it's easy to point fingers. … This job requires an understanding of a $500 million budget, working with over 200 employees across dozens of departments, and navigating the complexity of state and federal regulations. You need someone who knows how to manage people, solve problems, and make government work for everyone, not just during the election year, but every single day.”
