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Election gremlins invade North Whitehall
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In all of the excitement in District 1 over who paid for what mailers and the question of a conflict of interest if Jeanne McNeill is elected since her husband is a member of the Cunningham administration, it is easy to forget that there will be major implications for development along Route 309 in that District 1 depending upon how township elections go. While we can print the results now for Weisenberg and Lowhill—our exit polls show Bob Milot and Gene Weiner will take nearly 100% of the vote—other than those write-ins for Pip the Mouse, Lynn, Heidelberg and North Whitehall have elections that could turn the stretch of 309 after it breaks enters North Whitehall from a quaint country road to highly developed.
In Lynn, the entire reason for the Mike Dietrich write-in campaign is to give Kermit DeLong an ally for development of high-density housing at the site of the Olde Homestead Golf Course. Of course, the Old Homestead owners are allies of Kermit. The issue of development has split the town and when Mike Dietrich ended in a statistical tie in the primary he lost by 13 votes in low turnout and winner Brian Dietrich got 1 vote more than half as a third candidate got 12 votes.)
In Heidelberg, David Fink, a farmer, squares off again against Charlie Perich, who favors development. While open government is also cited as an issue, open space is the real issue. That was also a statistical dead heat, so again the rematch makes sense.
In both cases now, Democrats can vote and help make a difference, unlike the primary.
More confusing is North Whitehall where they are still fighting a Walmart. There, Jerry Joseph won a convincing victory over incumbent Terry Stoudt. Now, with the apparent backing of the three supervisors and other members of the traditional North Whitehall power structure, Joseph finds himself facing a write-in campaign from Brian Brinker.
Brinker’s main platform seems to be preserving the quarter midget racing track at the fairgrounds. That track, at which kids race on Sunday, raises funds for charity and also for the fire company in Schnecksville.
There are increasing complaints of political dirty tricks, however, in the township. While it seems like every spring rain brings dandelions, while those were popping up everywhere in May, Joseph signs were disappearing, typically from areas where Stoudt signs were unmolested. Now there is similar concern that Brinker signs will somehow be less attractive to thieves than Joseph signs.
Of course, nobody knows who removes these signs but campaign supporters fear that road crews and others in the township could be involved.
More troubling are the Brian Brinker signs at the Schnecksville Fire Company. They are troubling because that is a not-for-profit fire company that should not be involved in political action. It is also a polling place. There is no doubt that they support Brinker due to his involvement with them and the quarter midget track but that support should be as individuals and not as an organization. Even worse, when Joseph workers asked for permission to also place signs there, they were basically told they would get an answer within a week or so. The election is in 6 days.
Part of the reason why NW4SD, the good government group backing Joseph was so success was a concern over politics as usual, hidden deals with the Walmart developer and other issues. Let’s hope in the week that remains, the election process remains fair and above board.
Let the man who deserves the most votes get the most votes without chicanery or espionage!
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2009 Elections
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