Candidates for judge and district magistrate offices were asked the following question: What is the most important characteristic of a judge/magistrate?

Municipal and county candidates were asked the following question: What do you see as the biggest issue for residents in your municipality/county?

Candidates for school board seats were asked the following question: What is your position on property tax reform?

STATE

SUPERIOR COURT (vote for 2)

Democrat

Amanda Green-Hawkins - Allegheny County

Daniel D. McCaffery - Philadelphia County

Republican

Megan McCarthy King - Chester County Republican

Christylee Peck - Cumberland County Republican

LEHIGH COUNTY

CONTESTED RACES

COMMISSIONER AT-LARGE

4-year term (vote for 4)

Democrat

Dan Hartzell - South Whitehall

Zakiya Smalls - South Whitehall

Dave Harrington - Lower Milford

Bob Elbich - Weisenberg

Republican

Marty Nothstein - Lowhill

Brad Osborne - South Whitehall

Antonio A Pineda - Whitehall

“Hearing from residents the past few months, the concern that continually comes up is that of development and land use. As leaders, we have a responsibility to steward the land in our county. This means we must be wise in our use of land, pursue development responsibly, and do our part to preserve farmland and open spaces for our community.”

Dennis Nemes - Lower Macungie

Liberty

Matthew Schutter - South Whitehall

CONTROLLER

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Mark Pinsley - South Whitehall

Republican

Glenn Eckhart - Salisbury

BASD DIRECTOR - AT LARGE

4-year term (vote for 3)

Bethlehem, Lehigh County, Fountain Hill

Democrat

Dean Donaher

Karen Beck Pooley

Emily Schenkel

Republican

Kyle T. Miceli

NORTHAMPTON CO.

COMMON PLEAS COURT

10-year term (vote for 2)

Democrat/Republican

John M. Morganelli

Democrat

Abe Kassis

“Every judicial candidate should have legal knowledge and trial experience, as those are essential for a judge to capably preside over a court proceeding. However, the most important qualities for a candidate are that person’s sense of fairness and temperament. A judge should be open-minded to all parties, and willing to listen to all sides before ruling on the law. A litigant should feel as if they are being heard without bias. It is for that reason that a judge should recuse his or herself from cases where they have a familiarity with the parties.”

Republican

Victor Scomillio

“A judge must listen to facts and apply the law as written to guarantee the decision is free of political pressure, bias or popular trends; this ensures equal application of the law. For 20 years, I have advocated for clients in everything from adoptions to death penalty trials and know what citizens expect. As a law clerk for 2 years, I worked with our judges on writing opinions and making decisions and know judicial temperament, legal acumen and judicial independence are necessary qualities. Three FOP Lodges, including Bethlehem PD, endorsed my campaign - keeping our county safe is a priority.”

DISTRICT ATTORNEY-AT LARGE

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Terry Houck

“The most pressing issue for the residents of Northampton County this election cycle is to elect the most qualified candidate to be their next District Attorney. I’m asking for their vote and their confidence because I’ve not only been involved in law enforcement for over 40 year but I’ve also been NorCo’s First Deputy District Attorney for over 13 years. I’ve supported Mental Health and Drug Court that contain components to assist our Veteran’s returning home.”

Republican

Tom Carroll

CONTROLLER

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Tony E. Bassil

Republican

Hayden Phillips

NORTHAMPTON COUNTY COUNCIL

DISTRICT 1

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Kevin Lott

“Property taxes and the potential for a reassessment is one of the biggest issues facing citizens of Northampton County. Over the last two years, under the current Administration and Council, we have not raised taxes and will not raise taxes this year. I will not support a reassessment as a backdoor way to raise taxes. A reassessment will adversely affect long-term homeowners, primarily seniors. Other major challenges I plan to focus on include the following: threats to open space and farmland preservation, environmental issues, major decreases in state and federal funding for infrastructure, the explosion of warehousing and truck traffic, livable wage jobs, sustaining the future of Gracedale, and the devastating opioid crisis.”

DISTRICT 2

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Kerry Myers

Republican

James Fuller

DISTRICT 3

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Luke Verdes

“The Lehigh Valley is one of the fastest-growing areas in the Northeast. This means that members of the Northampton County Council must be forward-thinking in their approach to all the issues facing the County. We must work with our local municipalities to protect our open space and support infrastructure projects that benefit everyone, not just the developers. The impacts of growth make it imperative that we protect seniors on fixed incomes from tax hikes, and protect institutions like Gracedale Nursing Home. We must also invest in youth programs and make sure our kids don’t fall through the cracks.”

Republican

John Cusick

DISTRICT 4

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Dan Engle

Republican

Tom Giovanni

BETHLEHEM TWP

COMMISSIONER

FIRST WARD

4-year term (vote for 1)

Democrat

Dale A. Sourbeck

Republican

Wayne Buller

FREEMANSBURG

COUNCIL

4-year term (vote for 4)

Democrat

Justin “Peanuts” LaBar

Homer “Bud” Lorrah

Colleen Gallagher

Jim Smith

Republican

Margaret Reichard

HANOVER TWP

SUPERVISOR

6-year term (vote for 2)

Democrat/Republican

John N. Diacogiannis

“Pass-through traffic from developments outside our borders impacts the quality of life of our residents. I am seeking reelection to continue building on the solid foundation of strong planning and civic responsibility. This includes working on traffic issues with regional organizations, County, State, and Federal agencies. We are steadfast in our opposition to mega warehouses. Our own roads are considered some of the best in the Valley and we have an aggressive plan to maintain public infrastructure. We continue to be tough on crime and are adding two additional police officers without increasing taxes. This will enhance truck enforcement efforts.”

Democrat

Jeff Warren

Republican

Stephen R. Salvesen

“I believe that one of the biggest challenges that Hanover faces in the future, is Fire protection and EMS services. In the past, the Township had an abundance of volunteers for these positions. Most were local business people that could leave their jobs to respond to any emergency. As the Township has grown, there are less and less of these folks available to respond. The question now becomes, how will we fill this void? One way we have responded is to hire dual function employees, such as road crew/fireman. This is a short- term solution to a log-term problem. I believe that the long-term solution is a regional approach such as we have with the police.”

HELLERTOWN

COUNCIL

4-year term (vote for 3)

Democrat/Republican

Earl Hill

Phillip Weber

Democrat

Michael McKenna

Republican

Andrew Hughes

LOWER SAUCON TWP

COUNCIL

4-year term (vote for 3)

Democrat

Priscilla deLeon

Kristen Stauffer

George J. Gress

Republican

Jason Banonis

Sandra Yerger

Donna Louder

BETHLEHEM AREA

SCHOOL DISTRICT

DIRECTOR-AT LARGE

4-year term (vote for 3)

Democrat

Dean Donaher

Karen Beck Pooley

Emily Schenkel

Republican

Kyle T. Miceli

PROPOSED

CONSTITUTIONAL

AMENDMENT

CRIME VICTIM RIGHTS

Ballot Question

Shall the Pennsylvania Constitution be amended to grant certain rights to crime victims, including to be treated with fairness, respect and dignity; considering their safety in bail proceedings; timely notice and opportunity to take part in public proceedings; reasonable protection from the accused; right to refuse discovery requests made by the accused; restitution and return of property; proceedings free from delay; and to be informed of these rights, so they can enforce them?

Plain English Statement of the Office of Attorney General

The proposed amendment, if approved by the electorate, will add a new section to Article I of the Pennsylvania Constitution. That amendment will provide victims of crimes with certain, new constitutional rights that must be protected in the same way as the rights afforded to individuals accused of committing a crime.

The proposed amendment defines “victim” as both a person against whom the criminal act was committed and any person who was directly harmed by it. The accused or any person a court decides is not acting in the best interest of a victim cannot be a victim.

Generally, the proposed amendment would grant victims the constitutional right to receive notice and be present and speak at public proceedings involving the alleged criminal conduct. It would also grant victims the constitutional right to receive notice of any escape or release of the accused and the right to have their safety and the safety of their family considered in setting the amount of bail and other release conditions. It would also create several other new constitutional rights, such as the right to timely restitution and return of property, the right to refuse to answer questions asked by the accused, and the right to speak with a government attorney.

Specifically, the proposed amendment would establish the following new rights for victims:

? To be treated with fairness and respect for the victim’s safety, dignity and privacy

? To have the safety of the victim and the victim’s family considered in fixing the amount of bail and release conditions for the accused

? To reasonable and timely notice of and to be present at all public proceedings involving the criminal or delinquent conduct

? To be notified of any pretrial disposition of the case

? With the exception of grand jury proceedings, to be heard in any proceeding where a right of the victim is implicated, including, but not limited to, release, plea, sentencing, disposition, parole and pardon

? To be notified of all parole procedures, to participate in the parole process, to provide information to be considered before the parole of the offender, and to be notified of the parole of the offender

? To reasonable protection from the accused or any person acting on behalf of the accused

? To reasonable notice of any release or escape of the accused

? To refuse an interview, deposition or other discovery request made by the accused or any person acting on behalf of the accused

? Full and timely restitution from the person or entity convicted for the unlawful conduct

? Full and timely restitution as determined by the court in a juvenile delinquency proceeding

? To the prompt return of property when no longer needed as evidence

? To proceedings free from unreasonable delay and a prompt and final conclusion of the case and any related postconviction proceedings

? To confer with the attorney for the government

? To be informed of all rights enumerated in this section

The proposed amendment would allow a victim or prosecutor to ask a court to enforce these constitutional rights but would not allow a victim to become a legal party to the criminal

proceeding or sue the Commonwealth or any political subdivision, such as a county or municipality, for monetary damages.

Once added to the Pennsylvania Constitution, these specific rights of victims cannot be eliminated, except by a judicial decision finding all or part of the amendment unconstitutional or the approval of a subsequent constitutional amendment. If approved, the General Assembly may pass a law to implement these new, constitutional rights, but it may not pass a law eliminating them. If approved, State and local governments will need to create new procedures to ensure that victims receive the rights provided for by the amendment.

RETENTION

QUESTIONS

STATE

Superior Court

Shall Anne E Lazarus be retained for an additional term as Judge of the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania?

Shall Judy Olson be retained for an additional term as Judge of the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania?

Commonwealth Court

Shall Kevin Brobson be retained for an additional term as Judge of the Commonwealth Court of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania?

Shall Patricia A McCullough be retained for an additional term as Judge of the Commonwealth Court of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania?

Common Pleas Court

Shall Craig A. Dally be retained for an additional term as Judge of the Court of Common Pleas Third Judicial District, Northampton County?

Shall Michael J. Koury Jr. be retained for an additional term as Judge of the Court of Common Pleas Third Judicial District, Northampton County?