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Field Set for Primary Election
Posted 3-26-1999
The field is now set for the 1999 County Commissioner Primary Election. There are nine
Democrats and six Republicans running for two seats each. Ballot positions also have been
drawn and I received the number two position. I am not sure how much of a part it plays in
a Commissioner's race, but I'd rather have good position than bad. The problem for
Democrats is that we are on the bottom of the ballot. In Pennsylvania the party of the
Governor is on top. For some voters it can be harder to see the names down low. So names
on the bottom line of the ballot can be difficult to find.
But with the field set, I'm waiting for
some issues to take shape. Debates will be coming up in April and it will be interesting
to see if someone challenges someone else's record. With Dick Vidmer endorsing two
candidates will they run in his shadow or try to communicate some ideas of their own.
Dick's endorsement cuts two ways, as I believe more and more voters were tiring of his
style of management. People want open, competitive, efficient government, and as we face
real challenges ahead, fiscally-responsible, capable leadership is imperative.
Ron Diehl and Jim Gebicki, now each have a
chance to begin to communicate their platforms and demonstrate they are serious
challengers. Besides myself, we have a chance to elect another Commissioner who hasn't
first been appointed to the position. I was the first Democrat to be elected without
appointment since John Regoli in 1975. It will be interested to see how the next couple of
weeks evolve.
There are also a few marginal candidates
that I doubt have, or can raise the money to get their message out and will struggle to
organize a true county-wide campaign. They can still be a factor though, by taking a
certain percentage of votes away from other candidates. Last time, when I was a
challenger, just the right number of people were in the race for me to win. One more
challenger and I might not have made it. There were six candidates in the 1995 Democratic
Primary and the last place guy, spent no money and didn't have a real campaign yet he got
5,000 votes. Will the larger number of candidates affect the outcome this time? Or doesn't
it matter, since there is only one incumbent running? Let's see what happens! |
