Write-in votes cast in the May 20 primary throughout Lackawanna County will likely add several candidates to ballots for various offices in the Nov. 4 general election, county elections Director Beth Hopkins said Thursday.
The Lackawanna County Department of Elections and Voter Registration recently completed a count of the 22,669 write-in votes cast in the primary.
According to the department, the minimum numbers of write-in votes needed to produce a winning candidate were: 250 for a countywide office; 100 for a Scranton or Carbondale city office; 10 for a borough or township office; 10 for a municipal judge of elections post; and five for a municipal inspector of elections.
More than one person might meet or exceed the write-in threshold for any given office, but only the top write-in vote-getter in a race wins the write-in nomination, Hopkins said.
Having 22,669 write-in votes is a relatively large amount, but not necessarily unusual in an election with nominations for municipal judge of election and inspector of election posts up for grabs throughout the county, Hopkins said. Many of those getting written in for these elections posts already work at polling places and likely would accept the write-in nominations, she said.
Candidates in other races scoring sizable numbers of write-in votes also did not occur by happenstance.
“It seems like they were actively running a write-in campaign,” and probably would accept their nominations, Hopkins said of some candidates.
Some of the results of write-in voting include:
Lackawanna County sheriff: Glenn Capman received 1,122 Republican write-in votes to win the GOP nomination. He now could challenge incumbent Democratic Sheriff Mark McAndrew, who ran uncontested in his party primary. This sets up a rematch of 2021, when Capman ran unsuccessfully for sheriff as a Republican against McAndrew. Meanwhile, McAndrew received 808 Republican write-in votes in the May 20 primary, meaning he came in second and thus did not win a GOP nomination. There also were 316 other “scattered” write-ins for sheriff.
Lackawanna County register of wills: Vanessa Lienert received 1,183 Republican write-in votes to win the GOP nomination. She now could challenge in the general election incumbent Fran Kovaleski, who ran uncontested in the Democratic primary. Meanwhile, Kovaleski received 156 Republican write-in votes, which was not enough to top Lienert for the GOP nod. There also were 264 scattered write-ins for this office.
Lackawanna County district attorney: Incumbent Brian Gallagher, who ran uncontested in the Democratic primary, received 1,302 Republican write-in votes to also win the GOP nomination. This means his name will appear on the general election ballot as having secured both Democratic and Republican nominations.
Scranton City Council: Virgil Argenta, who lost in the Democratic primary for council, finishing last among six candidates with three nominations available, received 134 Republican write-in votes to win a GOP nomination. Sean McAndrew, who ran as a Democrat for council and won a nomination, coming in second of the six Democratic candidates, also secured a Republican nomination with 131 GOP write-in votes. He will appear on the general election as having both Democratic and Republican nominations. Republican Marc Pane was the lone candidate running for council in the primary and won a GOP nomination. The other two Democrats who won nominations in their party’s primary were Patrick Flynn and incumbent Councilman Tom Schuster. The results of the primary and the write-in votes would set up a council contest for three seats in the general election between Flynn, McAndrew, Schuster, Pane and Argenta.
The elections department will send letters to winning write-in candidates notifying them of their write-in nominations and giving them a deadline to accept or reject their nomination, Hopkins said. This date likely would be a few days before the Aug. 11 deadline for any candidate to withdraw from the election, she said.
Meanwhile, Aug. 1 is the last day for independents to file nomination papers to run for whatever office they seek in the general election. So, the full makeup of the general election ballot won’t become clear until around late August, after independents file and survive possible challenges to their paperwork, and after the winning write-in candidates accept their nominations, Hopkins said.