PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Tuesday’s primary election for the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners has a wide-open field of candidates battling for two open spots in November.
There are five Democrats and three Republicans on the primary ballot.
Commissioners chair Ken Lawrence is not seeking re-election. Previous chair and fellow Democrat, Val Arkoosh, left earlier this year to assume the role of Pennsylvania Department of Human Services secretary.
Jamila Winder was appointed to replace Arkoosh and is on the primary ballot. She’s endorsed by county Democrats. But after a series of contentious committee meetings, the party decided it would not endorse a second candidate.
Winder has teamed up with school teacher and Whitpain Township Supervisor Kimberly Koch in the primary. Koch and Winder list voting rights, infrastructure, education and reproductive rights as their priorities.
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Also on the ballot is Penn law professor Neil Makhija, from Lower Merion. Makija worked in the U.S. Senate and the Obama administration. He lists voting rights, mental health services and gun safety as his priorities.
Montgomery County Prothonotary Noah Marlier from Springfield is also seeking the party’s nomination. His priorities: affordable housing, community safety and climate change.
Tanya Bamford, Montgomery Township supervisor and marketing executive, rounds out the field. Bamford’s top priority is the recruitment and retention of county workers.
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On the Republican side, Joe Gale is seeking a third term as commissioner. Not only does he not have the endorsement of the Montgomery County Republican Committee, but the county GOP has actively campaigned against him, accusing him of attacking fellow Republicans and being more interested in being a minority commissioner on the three-person board than working together to get a Republican majority.
But Gale is no stranger to winning without county party support. He won his seat in 2015, beating two endorsed candidates in the primary, then won the general election over the endorsed Republican.
Gale’s opponents, Liz Ferry and Tom DiBello, are running as a team to try to win a Republican majority on the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners for the first time in more than 10 years.
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Ferry is an Upper Dublin commissioner and vice president of the Greater Philly Chamber of Commerce. DiBello is a business owner, former Spring-Ford Area School board member and Limerick Township supervisor.
They both say they prioritize the elimination of wasteful spending, police support and public safety, and election integrity.
The top two Democrats will face the top two Republicans from the primary in November for three seats on the county board.