GOP, Democratic party committee chairs assess primary outcome
The Republican voter turnout and the success of the GOP committee-backed candidates is good news to the county party leader.
“Overall, we are pleased with the election,” said David Show, Fayette County Republican Party Committee chairman on Wednesday. “We will never win 100 percent of the time, but the party did very well and is showing signs of strength, momentum and continued growth.
“We are always working to improve turnout, and it is getting better.”
According to the county election bureau, 28 percent or 6,287 of the 22,270 eligible GOP voters cast ballots in the primary election on Tuesday and successfully gave the nomination to several candidates in contested races.
Incumbent Commissioner Angela M. Zimmerlink, attorney Charity Grimm-Krupa and retired police officer Earl Wright — all backed by the local Republican committee — secured places on the general election ballot by defeating their challengers.
In the commission race, Zimmerlink, retired professor Dr. Evelyn Hovanec, South Connellsville finanical planner David Lohr and Uniontown businessman Pat Lion were battling for the two available nominations.
In addition to Zimmerlink, the GOP committee chose to support Hovanec in the contest.
Zimmerlink was the top vote-getter, garnering 2,902 votes, with Lohr receiving 2,703 votes for the GOP nomination, according to unofficial results reported by the Fayette County election bureau.
Lion placed third in the vote tally, receiving 2,515 ballots.
Hovanec was making her first bid for elected public office and made a good showing, said Show, collecting 1,873 GOP votes.
Show said that despite entering the race late, spending little money and being hampered by recent surgery, her results were remarkable.
“For a first time candidate, Dr. Hovanec did very well,” said Show. “She added enthusiasm and a fresh excitement to the race, staying competitive with a candidate who was running for the fifth time.”
Pointing to the magisterial district judge contests and school board races, Show said that registered Republicans again came out on top, despite cross-filing by all the candidates.
In the South Union and Menallen township magisterial race, Wright will face Jennifer Jeffries in the fall. Both were the top vote-getters, outpacing attorney Michelle Kelley for either party nomination.
In the heavily contested race for the magisterial district judge position in the Masontown area, Grimm-Krupa garnered the most votes on the Republican ballot, while German Township Supervisor Dan Shimshock garnered the bulk of the Democratic votes to place him on the fall ticket.
Other candidates vying for the seat included attorneys John A. Kopas III and Doug Sholtis, Fayette County Career and Technical Institute security director Jeff Myers, Masontown police Chief Joe Ryan and current Senior Magisterial District Judge Brenda Shenal-Calvacante.
Show, meanwhile, said that the committee and the candidates will gear up for the general election.
However, whether the committee will put its support behind Lohr — the second GOP nominee in the commission race — is still questionable.
Lohr, said Show, has refrained from supporting Zimmerlink in the past and has instead aligned with Democratic Commissioner Al Ambrosini in various issues, including the controversial prison matter.
Zimmerlink has long supported the renovation and expansion of the current lockup, while Ambrosini has backed replacing the outdated correctional facility with a new jail.
Lohr’s alleged siding with the Democratic commissioner has raised questions about his ties to the local GOP and the sitting Republican commissioner, said Show.
“I think people are tired of negative campaigns and Mr. Lohr’s long-standing opposition to Zimmerlink,” said Show, adding that the committee will again consider whether it will support Lohr.
James Davis, Fayette County Democratic Committee chairman, said he was disappointed with the lackluster turnout by both parties.
“I don’t know if anyone has the answer to stem the tide of apathy,” he said on Wednesday. “Fewer and fewer people are turning out for the elections.”
According to election bureau figures, 34.3 percent or 17,039 of the 49,621 registered Democrats voted on Tuesday.
Davis said voters had a slate of “very good candidates” to choose from at all levels of the ballot.
“I commend all the people that ran for these offices,” he said. “It takes a lot of effort to run for office and have your name put on a ballot and allow the voters to judge you.”
The number of candidates on both sides of the ticket added interest in the races, Davis added.
“We need to have people on the ballot, and we had an excellent group,” he said. “Although some were not as successful as others, we had very good candidates.”
Many had an uphill battle to secure the nomination, said Davis, including the coroner’s race and the contests for county controller, register of wills and the magisterial district judge seats.
“(Democratic coroner candidate) John Terravecchia is a terrific young man and ran a nice campaign, but he was running against a county icon in Dr. (Philip) Reilly, who has been very successful,” said Davis. “Both (controller candidates) Scott Abraham and Joby Palumbo, too, were fine candidates, but only one could have the nomination.”
Reilly captured the nomination over Terravecchia by 11,209 to 4,077, while Abraham edged out Palumbo by about 1,300 votes.
“I hope (Terravecchi and Palumbo), and Soni Shaner Mancuso, who is very involved in the party, stay engaged,” said Davis. “We need good people. I hope to see them running for another office in the future.”
The Democratic committee refrained from endorsing any of the candidates for the primary, including the hotly contested district attorney race.
Incumbent District Attorney Jack R. Heneks Jr. lost in his bid for a second term to Connellsville attorney Rich Bower in Tuesday’s election by 8,207-7,195.
“It was an extremely close race all night,” said Davis.
The two men were very qualified to hold the position, but a decision had to be made to determine the nomination, he added.
“(Heneks) has had a very successful career as district attorney and is an honorable man,” he said. “(Bower) is an excellent trial lawyer.
“The voters thought (Bower) was a better choice.”
Over the next several months the committee will focus on the election of the Democratic candidates over their GOP challengers, said Davis, adding that attention will also be given to the election of Democratic state Supreme Court justice candidates David Wecht, Christine Donohue and Kevin M. Dougherty.
“These are very fine people and deserve our support in the fall,” said Davis.