(5/1) The time is approaching for local residents in Pennsylvania and Maryland to elect or re-elect a number of their township, borough, city and town officials.
In Adams County and elsewhere in Pennsylvania, local elections are tied to the national primary elections, while in Frederick County and elsewhere in Maryland, municipalities tend to establish their own local election dates, regardless of the national primaries.
In Southwest Adams, voters in Carroll Valley and Fairfield boroughs, and in Hamiltonban and Liberty townships will be holding their local elections on May 18.
Carroll Valley Borough has a number of seats to be filled. Voters will be filling three seats on the borough Council, and electing or re-electing the mayor, the tax collector, and the constable. The council and mayoral seats are four-year terms, while that of the constable is a six-year term.
According to Assistant Borough Manager Gayle Marthers, running for council seats are incumbents Richard Mathews, Robert Verderaime, David Lillard and borough Planning Commission member Sara Laird. Ron Harris is running for re-election as mayor, while Phyllis Doyle-Smith is stunning for re-election as tax collector and Steve Beans is running for re-election as constable.
Fairfield Borough has three council seats to be filled, as well as the mayoral seat and that of the tax collector. The seats are for four-year terms.
According to borough Secretary Susan Wagle, incumbent Mayor Robert Stanley is running for re-election, while incumbents Camille Cline, Nathanael McNeill, and Dean Thomas have filed to run for re-election to council. Incumbent Tracy Paul has filed to run for tax collector.
Liberty Township has three seats to be filled: supervisor, tax collector, and elected auditor.
According to township Secretary/Treasurer Wendy Peck, Robert Jackson (whose seat is open to be filled) will not be running for re-election. Jessica Ilko was appointed last year for tax collector and is running for election, while, as of April 27, Brandon Lowe is the sole contender to fill Jackson’s seat. Susan Hek is running for re-election as elected auditor, but is not on the ballot, and she is running as a write-in.
Hamiltonban Township has one supervisor’s seat open, as well as tax collector and township auditor. The supervisor’s seat is a six-year term, as is that of the auditor, while the tax collector seat is a four-year term.
Of the possible candidates running for the three seats, township Secretary Nina Garretson
stated only incumbent Douglas Woerner will be running for re-election. No one has yet filed to run for auditor or tax collector.
In Maryland, Taneytown will be filling three, four-year council seats on that board in the upcoming May 3 town election. The council seats that will be up for election or re-election are those presently held by Diane Foster, Judith Fuller and Joe Vigliotti.
Candidates who are running for the seats include incumbents Foster, Fuller, and Vigliotti, and challenger Barbara Cook. The candidates have been certified and the deadline to file has expired.
Emmitsburg’s election will not be held until September 28 when two three-year commissioner seats presently occupied by Timothy O'Donnell and Clifford Sweeney will be up for election/re-election.
Thurmont’s election will not be held until October 26 when John Kinnaird’s mayoral seat will be filled, as well as the commissioner seats of Martin Burns and Wayner Hooper.