BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Democrat incumbents Rachel Leon and Hillary Kwiatek, and newcomers Justin Amann and Jo Daniels appear to be the top vote-getters in that order, each outlasting lone Republican hopeful Joseph Poplawski by at least 10 percentage points in both Lehigh and Northampton counties.
Mayor J. William Reynolds also secured another term, running unopposed after knocking off Bethlehem City Councilwoman Grace Crampsie Smith in May's primary.
Leon, vying for another four-year term, said she was impressed with Tuesday’s turnout at the polls across the city.
Following the closing of polls, Leon was rounding up her campaign signs outside of St. John’s Windish Evangelical Lutheran Church on East Fourth Street.
“I really love democracy,” she said. “I love it — the goods and the bads, and the ups and the downs.”
Leon, a Southside born-and-bred Navy veteran, joined City Council for the first time in 2022, priding herself on being “as accessible to people as possible.”
“These aren’t about personal legacies; these are about how you build an apparatus within the system where community members feel like their voices are being heard.”Bethlehem City Councilwoman Rachel Leon
“To me, it’s about broadening the table and broadening the conversation,” Leon said.
“These aren’t about personal legacies; these are about how you build an apparatus within the system where community members feel like their voices are being heard.”
Justin Amann, director of the Freedom High School Theatre Company and executive director of The Foundation for the Bethlehem Area School District, also was out late picking up campaign signs.
He said he loved the campaigning process leading up to now, including going door to door and hearing concerns from constituents firsthand.
“Let’s get back to talking about working people and things that affect our city every day, and the people who live, work, learn and play in our city. That has been my focus from the beginning.”Justin Amann, projected newcomer to Bethlehem City Council
“Let’s get back to talking about working people and things that affect our city every day, and the people who live, work, learn and play in our city,” Amann said.
“That has been my focus from the beginning.”
The grandson of a steelworker, Amann waged a campaign built on prioritizing “safe streets, strong city services, smart growth and great schools,” according to his website.
In an interview Wednesday, Kwiatek, a council member since 2022, said she looks forward to a continued shot at serving the city.
"A lot of folks seem to be very happy with or feel positively towards the direction that the city is going in and has been going in for the last four years, and wanted to affirm that with their votes," Kwiatek said.
She said some concerns she hears from her constituents include the cost of living and housing, as well as what's next for members of a homeless encampment along the Lehigh River.
She said outgoing Councilwoman Kiera Wilhem has been "a great asset on council, so I think her presence will be missed."
Each of the council-elects who responded voiced excitement for the chance to work alongside one another, both incumbent and newcomer.
The other candidates did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
