Two Nazareth Area School Board candidates have lost their court challenge over what they considered to be an error in the positioning of their names on ballots.
Northampton County President Judge Craig Dally on Wednesday, a day after the election, denied Linda Stubits’ and Wendy Whiteash’s petitions to correct what they said went against state law.
Dally heard arguments Oct. 31 from both candidates, who are among several who cross-filed as Republicans and Democrats after winning nominations during the spring primary for both parties. They told Dally that in-person ballots during voting Tuesday listed them on the Democratic side but not the Republican side.
Northampton County assistant solicitor Michael Vargo, who works on election matters, argued state election code says candidates nominated for the same office by more than one party are printed on the ballot only once, along with the names of each party by which the candidate was nominated.
“The candidates’ names are arranged in the same order as all other candidates’ names are otherwise required to be arranged,” Vargo said in a letter to Stubits provided by the county administration.
Candidates on general election ballots in Pennsylvania are listed in order based on which party received the most votes in the last gubernatorial election, according to the code. Because Gov. Josh Shapiro is a Democrat, Democratic candidates in each race are listed first this year.
Scott Hough, vice chair of the Northampton County Election Commission who sought to have an emergency meeting over the issue but was denied by the county administration, said in a largely municipal election, in which turnout is typically low, there could be voter confusion. He said “a couple of votes” can make a difference in local races, citing a 2021 Lehigh County judge race that amounted to a five-vote difference.
The issue essentially became moot, however, since both Stubits, an incumbent, and Whiteash won seats Tuesday, according to unofficial results. The Northampton County Election Commission is scheduled to publicly certify votes later this month.
Hough said he respects Dally’s decision. Stubits and Whiteash could not be reached for comment.
Hough also said the appointed, five-member Election Commission “is happy to hear from voters” at its meeting, which is set for 3 p.m. Nov. 18 at the courthouse in Easton.
Easton mail-in ballot issue clarified
In another issue, according to Hough, 48 voters in Easton District 2, where a contested City Council race involved Republican Sharbel Koorie and Democrat Julie Zando-Dennis, incorrectly received mail-in ballots for District 3, where Democrat Susan Hartranft-Bittinger was running unopposed for Council.
Christopher Commini, the county registrar, said last week that one incorrect ballot had been confirmed.
“After identifying the issue,” Commini said via an email, “our Elections Division immediately reached out to all 48 voters in the district who could have potentially been affected. Through this outreach, two voters claimed that they had received an incorrect ballot and were promptly issued the correct one.”
Zando-Dennis defeated Koorie by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, 705-384, according to unofficial election returns.
Contact Morning Call reporter Anthony Salamone at asalamone@mcall.com.
