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2018 Borough Primary Election Results

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Congratulations to all 2018 primary winners! All candidates deserve credit for running strong races and their dedication to advancing Democratic principles. The winners now become the official CCDC candidates for the general election (except that committeepersons now take office). Once again, Chesco is a swing county and Pennsylvania a swing state. So there are 6 more months of hard work ahead: please volunteer to help the candidate of your choice and strengthen our party at the same time!

Winners are in boldface below.

It’s no surprise that Senator Bob Casey, Governor Tom Wolf, and Chrissy Houlahan (US House PA-06, including all of Chesco), all unopposed, won their races. For Lieutenant Governor, from PA Department of State, statewide results were (rearranged from high to low):

FETTERMAN, JOHN K 37.56% 288,116 Votes
AHMAD, NILOFER NINA 23.75%. 182,174 Votes
COZZONE, KATHLEEN M. 18.53%. 142,152 Votes
STACK, MICHAEL J. 16.58%. 127,207 Votes
SOSA, RAYMOND. 3.57%. 27,418 Votes

Map from New York Times (see there also for full PA results for each state district):

So while our own Commissioner Cozzone ran well, Nina Ahmad of Philadelphia probably cut substantially into her vote, and John Fetterman doubtless benefited from his race for the Dem nomination for US Senate 2 years ago and endorsements from Bernie Sanders and the Philadelphia Inquirer. Kathi won Chester County with 61.75%, tribute to her well-received performance as Commissioner, in which office she naturally continues to serve the people of the County.

WEST CHESTER DEMOCRATIC COUNTY COMMITTEE RESULTS

810 WEST CHESTER 1 (Prec-0810)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
JIM SALVAS . . . . . . . . . . . .  . 166  38.43%
EMILY PISANO . . . . . . . . . . . . 98  22.69%
KAREN HEINDEL CAVIN . . 163  37.73%
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 . .1.16%

820 WEST CHESTER 2-EAST (Prec-0820)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
JAMES DENNIS . . . . . . . . . 38 76.00
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 12 24.00

825 WEST CHESTER 2-WEST (Prec-0825)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
NICK ALLEN . . . . . . . . . . 65 69.15
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 29 30.85 [write-in winner: McKinley Foster, 25 votes]

835 WEST CHESTER 3 (Prec-0835)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
EDWIN A BROWNLEY JR . . . . . . . 141 52.22
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 129 47.78 [write-in winner: Brian McGinnis, 69 votes]

842 WEST CHESTER 4 (Prec-0842)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
JORDAN NORLEY . . . . . . . . . 59 74.68
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 20 25.32 [write-in winner: Kevin Carson, 18 votes]

846 WEST CHESTER 5 (Prec-0846)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
SHEILA VACCARO. . . . . . . . . 106 53.81
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 91 46.19 [write-in winner: Don Braceland, 83 votes]

850 WEST CHESTER 6 (Prec-0850)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
JANET COLLITON. . . . . . . . . 135 49.63
GEETHA RAMANATHAN. . . . . . . . 133 48.90
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 4 1.47

860 WEST CHESTER 7 (Prec-0860)
VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN 2
STEPHANIE PHILLIPS MARKSTEIN . . . . 227 53.16
KYLE HUDSON. . . . . . . . . . 195 45.67
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 5 1.17

for the newly elected PA State Committee representing Chester County, see here

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VOTE Tuesday, May 15, 2018! Get your SAMPLE BALLOTS HERE!

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Make voting easier on yourself.  Get familiar with this SAMPLE GENERIC BALLOT FOR WEST CHESTER.
The Chester County Democratic Committee (CCDC) endorses the candidates marked with black ovals.
Consult your precinct committeepersons for information about State and WC Democratic Committee candidates.
To answer questions, Democratic committeepersons are working the polls all day; they are there to help you.
Don’t know your Precinct number or polling place?
The PA Department of State does.

2018 Primary Generic Sample Ballot PDF
for West Chester Borough

Why should YOU vote on Tuesday?

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Thank you to all who voted in the exciting November election, when Democratic candidates won 4 countywide offices for the first time ever, giving us a much more politically balanced County government.

And now: Why should YOU vote in the May 15 primary election?

  1. To help choose Dem candidates. Long-serving Chesco Commissioner Kathi Cozzone, known for her respectful values and exemplary public service, is in a tight 5-person race for Lieutenant Governor. Wouldn’t it be exciting to have one of our neighbors (Kathi and her family live in Exton) as a statewide leader who would do a great job for all the people of our state?
  2. And Carolyn Comitta, our former mayor and now our representative in Harrisburg, asks us to pass along to you: “It is really important to vote for Carolyn in the primary because every vote counts! We won by 25 votes in 2016 and we will need strong support to secure a win in 2018!”
  3. To send the message that West Chester, Chester County, and Pennsylvania are not on board with Trumpism.
  4. To choose 8 members of the PA State Dem Committee to represent Chester County in Dem party deliberations.  See http://chescodems.org/2018-candidates/ (at the end) and download the 2-page handout there.
  5.  To join your community as we all proudly wear stickers that say, “I VOTED TOAY!”

When people vote…

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It would take a book to detail Washington’s tragic turn, since January 2017, toward racism, classism, bellicosity, isolationism, jeopardy to our relations with long-standing allies, indifference to the daily-life needs of Americans, and just plain incompetence (with agency heads moving in and out at record speed).

But the moral is: When people vote, ultimately the government has to pay attention. It may not be fast enough to suit us, but it’s what we have to do.  -Nathaniel Smith

PS  One of the penalties for
refusing to participate in
politics is that you end up
being governed by your
inferiors.
              -Plato, circa 400 B.C.

 

Supreme Court refuses to stop new congressional maps in Pennsylvania

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By Robert Barnes March 19 at 3:20 PM

The Supreme Court on Monday turned down a request from Republican legislative leaders in Pennsylvania to block a redrawn congressional map that creates more parity between the political parties in the state.

The practical impact is the 2018 elections are likely to be held under a map much more favorable to Democrats, who scored an apparent victory last week in a special election in a strongly Republican congressional district. The 2011 map that has been used this decade has resulted in Republicans consistently winning 13 of the state’s 18 congressional seats.

Monday’s action was the second time that the court declined to get involved in the partisan battle that has roiled Pennsylvania politics. The commonwealth’s highest court earlier this year ruled that a map drawn by Republican leaders in 2011 “clearly, plainly and palpably” violated the free-and-equal-elections clause of the Pennsylvania Constitution.


[Supreme Court declines to get involved in Pennsylvania gerrymandering case]

The U.S. Supreme Court deliberated nearly two weeks before turning down the request to stop the map from being used in this fall’s elections. Generally the justices stay out of the way when a state’s highest court is interpreting its own state constitution.

WHAT IS GERRYMANDERING?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/c/embed/e447f5c2-07fe-11e6-bfed-ef65dff5970d

Gerrymandered no more?

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The Pennsylvania Supreme Court released its new maps of U.S. Congressional districts today. West Chester remains in the 6th District, but the district itself is very different, now encompassing all of Chester County plus Reading in Berks County. If this maps holds up to the expected Republican court challenge, the new districts will go into effect for this year’s elections.

WHAT IS GERRYMANDERING? https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/c/embed/e447f5c2-07fe-11e6-bfed-ef65dff5970d

 

The Avengers

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Our Chrissy Houlahan

 

Politics nation

A Year Ago, They Marched. Now a Record Number of Women Are Running for Office

Erin Zwiener returned to Texas to settle down. At 32, she had published a children’s book, won Jeopardy! three times and ridden roughly 1,400 miles from the Mexico border up the Continental Divide on a mule. In 2016, she moved with her husband to a small house in a rural enclave southwest of Austin with simpler plans: write another book, tend her horses, paint her new home blue.One day last February, she changed those plans. Zwiener was surfing Facebook after finalizing color samples for her living room–sea foam, navy, cornflower–when she saw a picture of her state representative, Jason Isaac, smiling at a local chamber of commerce gala. “Glad you’re having a good time,” she commented. “What’s your position on SB4?” After a tense back-and-forth about the Lone Star State’s controversial immigration law, Isaac accused her of “trolling” and blocked her. That’s when she decided to run for his seat. Zwiener never got around to painting her living room. She’s trying to turn her Texas district blue instead.
Continue reading →

CHESCO DEMS LIVING HIGH WITH PURCHASE OF HEADQUARTERS AND STRONG ROSTER OF CANDIDATES

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Daily Local News
Staff Report. Posted: 08/06/17   FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE


Settlement On
37 S. High Street In Heart Of West Chester Borough Complete

West Chester, PA (August 8, 2017) – After years of renting, Chester County Dems are finally homeowners. And the timing could not be more ideal as Chester County is home to one of the most active and rapidly growing Democratic organizations in Pennsylvania.

Philanthropist and 37 S. High Street owner Vivian Lasko turned over the keys to the historical building, built in 1893, at settlement on July 27. For the last 16 years, Chester County Democratic Committee (CCDC) ran its headquarters out of the building with approximately 800 SF of first floor office space.

Lasko, widow to long-time West Chester businessman Oscar Lasko who died at age 96 earlier this year, recently put the building on the market. Jim Salvas, the Democratic committee person in Lasko’s precinct, was liaison between her and the CCDC. Salvas noted, “this purchase would not have been possible without Vivian’s generosity, allowing us a right of first offer and help with financing.”

“While the party has always maintained a year-round office in West Chester,” continued CCDC Chairman Brian McGinnis, “we have never owned our headquarters. After searching the county for new space, we were pleased to be able to remain in the midst of West Chester’s vibrant downtown and county seat.”

Chesco Dems, riding high on changing demographics and an increase in voter turnout, decided to put down roots this year, in anticipation of the November 2017 local elections and next year’s national and statewide races.

“This purchase is the result of the hard work and dedication of the members of the Chester County Democratic Committee,” added McGinnis. “I am very humbled to be their Chairman during these exciting times in county politics. We are moving forward with a ton of momentum!”

Under McGinnis and the Executive Board of CCDC’s leadership, ballots in county and local elections are brimming with Democratic candidates, many for the very first time.

“Don’t underestimate the importance of local elections such as school board directors (ensuring that our school districts are solvent and promoting public education) and township supervisors (keeping our townships and boroughs safe places to live and raise a family),” wrote McGinnis earlier this month to his membership. “Local elections matter. Our county-wide candidates will restore integrity, trust, and transparency to government, and our judicial candidates will represent the interests of people over the powerful.”

Election Day 2017 is Tuesday, November 7. There is good reason for optimism in the suburbs.

As the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote after May’s primary, “In Chester County, where Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton outperformed Republican Trump in November by more than 25,000 votes despite a GOP registration advantage, 18 percent of Democrats came out to vote on Tuesday, compared with just 10 percent four years ago.”

For information about Chester County Democratic Committee, visit their website at chescodems.com and follow them on Facebook.

Close Races

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Candidates need your vote; your local and state governments need your vote; your nation needs your vote. You choose who you want to run your government, your democracy. “If you stay home, you’re voting for the other side.”

West Chester has eight (8) precincts. Mayor Comitta’s 23-vote-win in the 2009 Primary meant that if just three people (3) from each precinct stayed home, she would have lost.

If you stay at home, you’re voting for the other side. So, don’t vote for the other side. Get up, get dressed, and go to your polling place, which is open from 7AM to 8PM.

This is what your vote means — why each vote counts …

  • 2000, WC Borough Council President, Ward 2, Diane LeBold tied the general election and won by a coin toss. She is now President of Borough Council.
  • 2006, State Representative, 156th District, Barbara McIlvaine Smith, won the general election by 28 votes.
  • 2009, Mayor, Borough of West Chester, Carolyn Comitta won the primary election by 23 votes.
  • 2015, Magisterial District Justice, Marion Vito won the general election by 44 votes.
  • 2016, State Representative, 156th District, Carolyn Comitta won the general election by 25 votes.

So, don’t vote for the other side. Get up, get dressed, and go to your polling place.

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It’s official: Comitta will represent 156th district after ballot recount

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dlnLogoColor

By Adam Farence, Daily Local News
Posted: 12/16/16, 4:17 PM EST

Mayor Carolyn Comitta

Mayor Carolyn Comitta

WEST CHESTER: Carolyn Comitta can now officially call herself state Representative Comitta after a hearing Friday afternoon determined she would represent the 156th legislative district in Harrisburg.

Comitta, a Democrat and the mayor of West Chester, had challenged Dan Truitt, R-156, of East Goshen, for his spot on the state legislature.

Common Pleas President Judge Jacqueline Carroll Cody presided over the hearing. Comitta was represented by Samuel Stretton, a longtime county Democrat and attorney and Truitt was represented by Curtis Norcini.

“I appreciate that you all pursued everything you did to ensure the integrity of the election process,” Cody told everyone assembled.

Truitt was not present for the hearing, and did not return a request for comment.

“We wanted to make sure that every valid ballot was counted, and that whoever won was the people’s choice,” Comitta said after the hearing. “I’m grateful to all the voters, all the volunteers, voter service, and Dan Truitt for his graciousness and service to our community.”

Both attorneys told Cody that they had agreed with the results of the recount, which put Comitta ahead of Truitt by 25 votes, putting her total at 18,267 to Truitt’s 18,242. Comitta’s campaign had filed for a recount after unofficial results from election day declared Truitt the winner.

Comitta extended her thanks to all her campaign staff and workers, including Stretton.

“I am honored to serve as representative for the citizens of district 156 and look forward to working together to make our wonderful community even better for all.”

To contact Daily Local News staff writer Adam Farence, email afarence@dailylocal.com, or call 610-235-2647.

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