Twenty residents apply for open Fayette County commissioner seat
Herald-Standard
Editor’s note: This story was updated to reflect that Lisa Nicholson is no longer an assistant to the district attorney
Twenty people expressed interest in taking a seat at the commissioner’s table, among them are former commissioners, current supervisors, a former mayor, veterans, educators and health care professionals.
Those that submitted letters of intent before the Friday at noon deadline are Alfred Ambrosini of Connellsville, Ken Bork of Uniontown, Sean Cavanagh of North Union Township, Melany Chrash, Ronald Deems, Jacob Ely of Perryopolis, Walter Gearhart of Bullskin Township, Christopher L. Hager, Lawrence Hartman of Henry Clay Township, Anthony Jordan of Point Marion, Harry Kaufman of Uniontown, William Kiger III, Guy Napolillo of Connellsville, Lisa Nicholson, Chris Ohler of Bullskin Township, Melanie Stringhill Patterson, Randy Raymond Jr. of Lemont Furnace, Debra Evans-Rhodes of Uniontown, Glenn A. Townsend of Masontown and Jason Austin Werkman of Uniontown.
A seat on the three-person board became available after Dave Lohr, 68, of Connellsville, resigned from his seat with two years left in his term, citing a desire to spend more time with his family.
As per the county code, who will fill the seat is to be determined by President Judge Steve P. Leskinen.
Applicants were asked to hand-deliver their cover letters, resumes and signed recommendations by Friday at noon to the office of the court administrator. To qualify, applicants must be registered voters, have lived in Fayette County for at least a year and must have been registered as a Republican since Nov. 7, 2023.
Since Lohr is a Republican, the seat must be filled by someone with the same political affiliation.
Among the applicants were former commissioners Ambrosini, who served from 2012 to 2015, and Cavanagh, who held office from 1996 to 2004.
Other candidates include Point Marion Council Member Anthony Jordan and Bullskin Township Supervisor Chris Ohler; Harry Kaufman, former Uniontown Area School Board member; Randy Raymond, former Laurel Highlands School Board member; and Guy Napolillo, former Connellsville mayor.
Candidates were asked to include letters of recommendation. Lohr endorsed his chief-of-staff Evans-Rhodes and Nicholson.
Other recommendations of note include several from state Rep. Charity Grimm Krupa, who wrote letters recommending assistant professor and board certified nurse practitioner Chrash, Ohler and campaign strategist Townsend, who also received Aubele’s recommendation.
Greene County Commissioner Betsy McClure also wrote a letter of recommendation for Chrash.
State Rep. Ryan Warner wrote a letter of recommendation for Ohler.
Per the county code, there is no timetable for when Leskinen will name Lohr’s successor.