The LuLac Edition #5,020, November 7rth, 2023

 

STATEWIDE SUPREME COURT

Democrat Daniel McCaffery and Republican Carolyn Carluccio. McCaffery has been a judge on Superior Court since 2019, Carkuccio has been a Common Please Judge since 2009 in Montgomery County

STATE SUPERIOR COURT

There are four candidates vying for two seats on the bench — two Republicans and two Democrats — in addition to two current judges who are seeking to extend their terms.

Maria Battista is a Clarion County resident running as a Republican. Battista has served as assistant general counsel for the health and state departments for two Pennsylvania governors — Republican Tom Corbett and Democrat Tom Wolf. She currently works as vice president of state and federal contracting for a Wayne-based consulting firm. She left the Department of Defense to run for office.

Battista is not recommended by the Pennsylvania Bar Association because she opted not to participate in their evaluation process.

Harry Smail is running as a Republican. Smail has been a judge on the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas since 2014, when he was appointed by Corbett. He’s worked as a private practice attorney, served as a solicitor for two county row offices, and ran unsuccessfully for several county offices.

Smail was “recommended” by the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

Democratic candidate Jill Beck is an attorney based in Pittsburgh who works in commercial litigation. Beck clerked for Judge Christine Donohue on the state Supreme and Superior Courts for several years, and says she drafted over 500 opinions in that time. This is not the first time Beck has run for Superior Court. She ran in 2021 but lost the primary to Timika Lane of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

Beck is “highly recommended” by the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

Timika Lane has served as a judge on the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas since 2013, when she was elected to the role. She previously clerked for Judge Renee Cardwell Hughes on the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, worked for the Defender Association of Philadelphia, and served as legal counsel for state Sen. Anthony Williams (D., Philadelphia). Lane ran in 2021 for Superior Court. While she won the Democratic primary, she lost in the general election.

Lane is “highly recommended” by the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

In addition to the four candidates running, there are two sitting Superior Court judges seeking to serve another 10-year term. On the ballot, there will be a separate section labeled “Judicial Retentions” and voters will be asked to select “yes” or “no” for each judge.

Judge Vic Stabile, who was elected as a Republican in 2013, is seeking a second term. President Judge Jack Panella, who was elected as a Democrat in 2003, is seeking a third.

COMMONWEALTH COURT

Republican candidate Megan Martin is a Cumberland County resident and former secretary and parliamentarian of the state Senate. She has worked as an attorney for former Republican Govs. Tom Ridge and Corbett, as well as the U.S. Navy. She was also a law clerk for a Lancaster County judge.

Democrat candidate Matt Wolf has been a judge on the Philadelphia Municipal Court since 2017, where he has presided over civil and criminal cases. He worked as a trial attorney for 25 years at various firms, including his father’s and his own. He also was an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve and worked as a legal advisor to the Army.

All these races are important due to the election deniers still among us and in the country. Look at this exchange between Steve Scalise and George Stephanopoulos on This Week. After seeing this you’ll realize that the courts are the firewall against losing our democracy and voting power.  The fun begins at the 3:15 time mark in.

LUZERNE COUNTY

The race for District Attorney is uncontested. There are no Judicial retention votes either. The County Council race is the one people seem to be watching. The Democratic party is putting money into this effort with a full slate of contenders Democrats Patricia Krushnowski, Michelle Rothenbecker, Jimmy Sabatino, Joanna Bryn Smith, Brittany Stephenson, and Mary Ann Velez.

Stephen J. Urban (R, incumbent), Thomas Dombroski, Harry Haas Lee Ann McDermott (R, incumbent), Matthew Mitchell (R, incumbent), and Kimberly Platek are running on the GOP side.

The GOP has had control of the Council now for two years and has a dubious record of governing. They needed to hire an outside firm to do their job in dispersing American Rescue Funds, some members they went on a fool’s errand replacing an interim County Manager with an out-of-town job hopper Randy Robertson who then resigned because he saw how incompetent they were to deal with. They screamed about raises for low paid county workers but wasted nearly a million dollars of taxpayer money and were unable to govern.

 

MAYORAL RACES

George Brown in Wilkes-Barre should win overwhelmingly for a second term. I predict he’ll beat his winning percentage of 2019. Jeff Cusat in Hazleton also appears to be headed to another term which if he’s successful will be his third.

 

LACKAWANNA COUNTY

Bill Gaughan and Matt McGoin are running against incumbent Chris Chermak and his running mate Mayfield Council woman Diana Campbell.  Cermak will most likely retain his minority commissioner status. The other county races for treasurer, coroner, controller, and clerk of judicial records, all held by Democrats were not contested. A judicial retention question in Lackawanna County will ask voters if James A. Gibbons should serve an additional 10-year term as a judge on the Court of Common Pleas.