See who won and lost their petition challenges
Update: Willam Rowe removed from Republican ballot in Norco Council District 1.
The court challenges to remove competitors from the May 16 ballot are over. Here is a look at their outcomes.
Lehigh County
Whitehall Mayor
Tina Jo Koren, the Whitehall Township treasurer who is running for mayor, kept her spot on the Republican ballot. Republican Kade A. Marx, a son of Democratic mayoral candidate Joseph Marx Jr., filed the challenge, saying Koren allegedly failed to file a statement of financial interest with the township.
According to a memorandum issued by Lehigh County Judge Michele Varricchio:
Testimony showed Koren filed a required financial statement with the Lehigh County Board of Election and the township. Kade Marx testified that the one she filed was for her current elected position, not as a mayoral candidate as she had not checked off the box marked candidate. Varricchio said Marx had not raised the box as an issue in filing his appeal and thus could not bring it up.
Koren will face Republican John C. Hersh for the nomination. Republican Ron Reaman, a former Whitehall treasurer, previously withdrew his petition. On the Democratic side, Marx Jr,, president of the township Board of Commissioners, will face Michael Cocca. Incumbent Mayor Mike Harakal previously withdrew his petition.
Allentown Council
Democratic incumbent Candida Affa survived a challenge to her petition filed by Democrat Rodney Bushe, one of the six other candidates running for city council. County Judge Melissa Pavlack declared some of Affa’s signatures as invalid, but not enough to keep her off the ballot – and directed her to amend her petition to include electoral divisions.
The decision means seven Democratic candidates remain on the ballot for three seats on City Council. Besides Affa and Bushe, the others are incumbents Santo Napoli and Ce-Ce Gerlach and candidates Luis Acevedo, Tino Babayan and Sarina Torres. No Republicans are on the primary ballot.
Magistrate races
Democrat Mark McCants overcame a challenge by Patrick Palmer over signatures for magisterial district judge 31-1-09 in Allentown — a new district that includes Wards 6 and 10 and does not have an incumbent. Palmer, whose own attempt to be on the ballot failed, was unable to argue that McCants had invalid signatures because a judge said he had not filed the required paperwork to challenge the petition. No Republicans are on the ballot.
Republican Keith Morris did not survive a challenge over signatures on his petitions for the Democratic and Republican ballots for magistrate judge 31-1-08 (Allentown’s Ward 16 and Salisbury Township). The challenge was filed by Donna Miller and Kyle Miller, who is one of the two remaining candidates who cross-filed and who previously ran unsucessfully for the post. The other candidate is Christopher Rapp. The seat is now held by Michael Pochron, who did not file nomination papers.
Northampton County
Northampton County Council
Kerry L. Myers, president of Northampton County Council and a Democrat, did not survive a challenge to signatures on his nomination petition for District 2. The petition challenge over 110 signatures was filed by Edward Keegan, a Democrat from Forks Township and member of the Easton Area School Board. His wife Kelly Keegan is a Democratic candidate for the seat and a current Forks Township supervisor.
William Rowe, a Republican from Hellertown who is running for Northampton County Council in District 1, survived a challenge in Northampton County Court filed by Steven Topp of Bethlehem over Rowe's statement of financial interest.
Topp’s attorney Larry Otter filed an appeal before the state Commonwealth Court on Wednesday. Update: The Commonwealth Court sent the case back to county court and a new order by Senior Judge Edward Reibman removed him from the ballot, according to Otter.
Rowe is the only Republican to file nomination petitions for the seat. Ken Kraft, a former county council president, is on the Democratic ballot.
Incumbent Republican Toni E. Lynch was removed from the Republican ballot for Bangor Area School Board Board. Lynch, who cross-filed, remains on the Democratic ballot. Caterina Campbell of Bangor challenged his petition over nine signatures that lacked required dates. He is among nine people – eight of whom have cross-filed – running for five seats on school board.