Nov 1, 2013 3 min read

Voters in some Washington County communities will have a number of choices while casting their ballots for local candidates in the general election Tuesday.

In Canonsburg, Democratic incumbent Mayor David Rhome is being challenged for re-election by Republican Anthony Ross.

Ross, a retired steelworker, relocated to Canonsburg from Charleroi, where he served a four-year term on council. He is a Navy veteran and was involved with public safety throughout his career.

Ross said that, if elected, his main goals would be to bring more businesses to Canonsburg, direct the police department to crack down on drugs, and implement crime watch and porch light programs in the community.

“It’s important to me that the police force gets new direction,” Ross said. “Every community is coming apart at the seams, and we’re not alone in this. But we need to come down on these drugs and come down on these nuisance bars.”

Rhome, a lifelong Canonsburg resident, has been the mayor since 2009. He is the co-owner of Sam’s Pizza and assistant fire chief.

Rhome said he has helped the police department move forward by launching investigations that resulted in several drug busts and providing more efficient training and equipment for officers.

He said he has played a role in introducing several new programs in the school district and community, including anti-bullying, drug take-back and electronic recycling programs.

If reelected, Rhome said he would like to focus on safety and bringing more businesses to the community.

“We’re working with many different companies that want to relocate here to Canonsburg, and that’s my agenda, to keep the town safe and to continue to bring prosperity to our community,” he said.

In North Strabane Township, independent Neil Kelly, of Eighty Four, will be facing Republican Robert Balogh and Democrat Bill Brooks, both of whom won their parties’ nominations for the two-year and six-year supervisors terms that are open.

Five candidates will vie for four seats on Peters Township School Board. Running on both the Republican and Democrat tickets are incumbent Sue Smith, and newcomers Lisa Anderson and Rebecca Bowman; Jamison Hardy is running on the Republican ticket only; and incumbent David Hvizdos is running on the Democratic ticket only.

All incumbents on the Peters Township Council are running unopposed in Tuesday’s election. Because of the unexpected July death of Councilman Robert Atkison, Republicans nominated Megan Jones Rolla to fill the seat. No nominations were received from the Democratic Party, so Jones Rolla will run unopposed.

In Cecil Township, Supervisor Michael Debbis will not be seeking re-election, and resident Cindy Fisher will be running unopposed on both the Democratic and Republican tickets.

In the Ringgold School District, incumbent Larry Mauro could win two seats on the Ringgold School Board. Mauro, a Democratic, is running against Don Bartoe, who took the Republican nomination for a two-year term representing Donora and part of Carroll Township. In the race for a four-year, at-large term, Mauro will face off against Jason Gerard.

A similar situation exists in North Franklin Township, where board of supervisors Chairman Alex Migyanko, an independent, is on the ballot for two board seats up for grabs.

Migyanko will face Republican Martha Ward to fill the remaining term of Jim Huff, who resigned from office early this year. He’s also on the ballot for a six-year term as supervisor against Mike Quinn, a Republican, and the Democratic challenger, Ron Junko.