Lehigh Valley Politics and Election News

Philip Ginder, 74, who served on the Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners for 24 years, was appointed on Wednesday to fill the vacancy created when Commissioner Robert Piligian resigned in February.

Candidates for Northampton County Council, Allentown City Council, Allentown mayor and Parkland School Board are being challenged in court for allegedly failing to meet legal requirements to appear on the May ballot.

A Lehigh County judge ruled in favor of LoriAnn Fehnel, a Republican candidate for Whitehall Township Commissioner, who challenged that candidate Betsey H. Charles's nominating petition is invalid and should be set aside.

City officials voted in favor of raising the next council president’s salary from $7,600 to $11,400 a year and council members’ annual pay from $7,100 to $10,650. However, City Council decided against salary increases for the next mayor and controller.

This week on Political Pulse, host Tom Shortell speaks with Celeste Dee, owner of Lehigh Valley-based Advantage Political Strategies. The two talk about judicial campaigns.

The vacancy on the Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners will be filled at a meeting on Wednesday night. The board interviewed three candidates on Monday night.

Whitehall Township treasurer/tax collector Tina Koren is asking the Lehigh County Court to reject Commissioner Thomas Slonaker's nominating petition for her job.

Whitehall Township commissioner Republican candidate LoriAnn Fehnel filed a challenge March 14 against fellow Republican candidate Betsey H. Charles, 3212 Chestnut St., based on deficiencies on the latter’s petition.

Gerald C. Yob has been mayor of Freemansburg for 44 years. He served on borough council 12 years before that. Yob turns 96 in August, and plans on running for a 12th term as mayor.

Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners have until March 29 to fill the vacancy and will conduct public interviews with candidates on Monday starting at 6 p.m.

Republican congressional candidates Maria Montero and Ryan Mackenzie criticized U.S. Rep. Susan Wild after she said Carbon County "drank the Trump Kool-Aid" on a conference call with prominent Pennsylvania Democrats.

Campaign finance reports show Republican Kevin Dellicker outraised the rest of the GOP field combined in his bid for PA-7. But Democratic incumbent Susan Wild raised twice as much as all of the Republicans put together.

Newly sworn-in Northampton County District Attorney Stephen Baratta expects it will take him more than a year to fill his roster of prosecutors. In the meantime, his office has to deal with a massive backlog of cases.

Easton City Councilwoman Taiba Sultana, no stranger to controversy over the past year, has announced a run for the Pa. House's 136th District.

State Rep. Bob Freeman, D-Northampton, announced Monday he will seek re-election to a 20th term.

Take a look at stories that ran throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.

Rep. Joshua Siegel announced on Friday he will seek a second term in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Siegel, 29, represents the 22nd Legislative District, which includes parts of Allentown and Salisbury Township.

President Joe Biden spent 4.5 hours in the Lehigh Valley on Friday, touring small businesses and promoting his economic initiatives. He visited Main Street in Emmaus and met with Allentown firefighters at the Allentown Fire Training Academy.

President Joe Biden is making his second visit to the Lehigh Valley as commander-in-chief. He stopped into Main Street businesses in Emmaus and the Allentown Fire Training Academy in Allentown.

“He’s here to talk about his economic recovery (policies), and I can tell you that we felt that in Allentown,” Mayor Matt Tuerk said Thursday.

President Joe Biden is expected to talk about small businesses and the economy during a visit to the Lehigh Valley today. Here's a roundup of the details.

Police declined to provide any additional information, but the rumor mill has the president stopping in at least one local business on his visit to the Lehigh Valley on Friday. East Penn and several other school districts plan to dismiss students early.