Three candidates win nominations of both parties in district judge races
The field of 11 candidates vying to be judges in four Washington County magisterial was whittled to five Tuesday, as candidates won both the Democratic and Republican nominations in three of the four districts.
Curtis Thompson, who has been the judge in District 27-3-02 for 30 years, easily fended off a challenge from Cokeburg newcomer Ron Tardivo, winning both the Democratic and Republican nominations after cross-filing in both contests. This means he will face no challenger in the general election in November. Thompson’s district includes such communities as Scenery Hill, Marianna, Bentleyville and Ellswoth. On the Republican ballot, Thompson received 957 votes to Tardivo’s 362, while Tardivo received 324 votes on the Democratic ballot to Thompson’s 1,113.
The three other Washington County magisterial districts where there were contested races did not include incumbents on the ballot. In District 27-3-10, Judge Ethan Ward did not seek reelection, and in District 27-1-01, Judge Robert Redlinger announced his retirement. The ascension of Judge Traci McDonald-Kemp to a seat on the Washington County Court of Common Pleas in 2019 has left the seat in District 27-3-06 open since.
In District 27-3-10, Chartiers Valley School District police officer John Bruner won the Democratic and Republican nominations over Dan Stanek, a police officer with the Trinity Area School District. Other candidates in the race were Scott Bernett, an Avella resident and the owner of a fire restoration company, and Jason Moore, an employee of his family’s trucking business. Moore only ran on the Republican ballot. The district includes Claysville, West Alexander, Buffalo, Independence and Hopewell townships, and other municipalities. Republicans gave Bruner 1,161 votes to Stanek’s 892, with Moore following at 210 and Bernett at 188. Democratic voters cast 662 votes for Bruner, with 480 going to Stanek and Bernett receiving 127.
Lou McQuillan, the police chief in Mt. Pleasant Township, took both the Republican and Democratic nominations in District 27-3-06. He defeated Kristin Clingerman, a former Washington County assistant district attorney. Hickory, McDonald, and Cecil and Robinson townships are among the communities in the district. On the GOP ballot, McQuillan received 1,482 votes to Clingerman’s 710, and he received 1,063 votes on the Democratic ballot, while Clingerman got 857.
The city of Washington, Gabby Heights and North Franklin Township are in District 27-1-01, and Kelly Stewart, an employee in the Washington County District Attorney’s Office, won the Democratic nomination, and Patrick Puskarich, a sergeant deputy in the Washington County Sheriff’s Department, took the Republican nod. The third candidate in that race was Robert Dulaney, a service porter for Budd Baer Auto Group in Washington. In the Democratic contest, Stewart received 725 votes, with Puskarich getting 479 votes and Dulaney getting 236. In the Republican race, Puskarich got 484 votes, with Stewart receiving 274 votes and Dulaney getting 263.
There are 11 magisterial districts in Washington County, with elections held in those districts on a staggered basis in off-year elections. Magisterial district judges are paid a uniform rate of $93,338 across Pennsylvania.