Commonwealth Court denies request to halt Donegal supervisors election
A state Commonwealth Court judge has denied an attempt to halt Tuesday’s primary for the Donegal Township Board of Supervisors.
Judge Renee Cohn Jubelirer on Thursday upheld a lower court ruling by Washington County Judge Michael Lucas last month that allowed the municipal election to proceed as usual.
Township supervisors Richard Martin, Richard Fidler and Tammi M. Iams originally asked for the preliminary injunction April 9, claiming they would be adversely affected by the primary because they could be removed from office before terms were not set to expire at the end of the year.
That lawsuit attempted to stop the Board of Elections from placing the race on the primary ballot, but the appeal to the Commonwealth Court effectively asked election officials not to count the results.
Voters in Donegal Township overwhelming approved a referendum in November to downsize the board from five members to three following this year’s municipal election.
It was not immediately known if the plaintiffs planned to appeal the most recent ruling.
Martin and Fidler are candidates in the Republican primary, while Iams and Kathleen Croft are running for the Democratic nomination. Three supervisors will be chosen during the general election in November.