Lehigh Valley Politics and Election News

At a virtual town hall Thursday, U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Lehigh Valley, said he did not support cuts to Medicare or Social Security, called for peace in Ukraine, and gently pushed back on how the Trump administration handled cuts to the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Organizers with the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, Democratic National Congressional Committee and several other groups invited U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie to a town hall event Thursday over proposed Medicaid cuts. Instead, the first-term Republican will hold his own telephone town hall.

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.

Six of the nine seats on the Parkland School Board are up for election. Two opposing candidate groups will face off on Nov. 7.

Current Upper Milford Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Joyce Moore is up for re-election, with a challenge from the current head of the recreation commission Angela Ashbrook.

Open space usage and preservation, zoning and the environment are the major concerns of all three candidates in the race for two open seats on the Upper Nazareth Township Board of Supervisors.

The general election for the Alburtis borough council is a near mirror-image of its Republican primary race, with five current council members running for four open seats on the council.

The Bethlehem NAACP hosted candidates for Bethlehem City Council, Bethlehem Area School District and Northampton County judge on Thursday evening.

The interactive event features a local author and historian discussing the birth of the U.S. Constitution for children ages 7-12 years old.

Four locations will be available beginning Thursday.

Northampton County Elections Office initiates Ballot-on-Demand voting for the Nov. 7 Municipal Election starting today.

Gov. Josh Shapiro may be the only person in Bedford, NH who doesn't think he'll run for president in 2028.

Gov. Josh Shapiro addressed about 500 people at the New Hampshire Democratic Primary convention in Bedford, N.H., on Saturday. He denied his trip was an effort to kick the tires on a presidential run in 2028.

The League of Women Voters of Lehigh County hosted the forum where the pledge signed onto by the "true Republicans" was center stage.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro will address New Hampshire Democrats at their state convention Saturday, marking his first trip to an early primary state. His dominant victory in the 2022 governor's race raised Shapiro's political star in national circles.