With a under a month until Election Day, a write-in campaign and a significant change in party registration is raising interest in the proceedings.
There was a one significant addition to the ranks of the Independent voters. Clarion County Commissioner Ed Heasley, who was elected as a Democrat, changed his registration to Independent.
“I have been a registered Democrat for over 50 years and I thought it was time for a change,” said Heasley. He said his reasons for the change were personal.
There have been two candidates that have filed for write-in campaigns. One candidate, Andrew Montana has filed as a write-in for three positions. Montana has filed for two seats on the Clarion Borough Council, a two-year seat and a four-year seat. He has also filed as a candidate for Clarion County Commissioner.
Montana had filed petitions to appear on the ballot as an Independent but his petitions for county commissioner and Clarion Borough council were struck down in court due to an error on his petitions.
The other candidate mounting a write-in campaign is Stephen Miller who is seeking a Richland Township Supervisor position.
Laura O’Neil, Elections and Voter Registration Coordinator with the Clarion County Election Bureau, explained the process for running a write-in campaign. “The candidate can come to our office and file a paper with us but it is not mandatory,” said O’Neil. “There are some rules that apply to all candidates. It is up to the candidate how they run their campaign.”
Write-in ballots often have the candidates name misspelled or are difficult to read.
Clarion County is gearing up for the election next month. “We had the inspection of our voting machines by Dominion to be certain we are ready,” said O’Neil.
“Our next step is to get mail-in and absentee ballots mailed out soon. We have had about 1,500 applications for both absentee and mail-in ballots,” she said. The deadline for applying for a mail-in or absentee ballot is October 31. The deadline of changing voter registration is October 23.
Although the county currently has enough poll workers, O’Neil noted, “We are always looking for poll workers.” The county pays poll workers between $145 to $160 per day depending on the position.
As of Oct, 4, 2023, there are 23,000 registered voters in Clarion County. The Republican Party has 14,856 voters, the Democratic Party 5,834 and voters with no affiliation, 1,919 voters. Voters registered as Independents listed 333 voters and the Libertarian Party 97 registered voters.
Bobby Wilk, Elections and Voter Registration Coordinator with the Clarion County Election Bureau, said there has been the usual amount of party switching with no one party having an advantage.
The county signed a facilities use agreement with PennWest Clarion for the use of the lobby in the Marwick-Boyd building for Clarion’s Third Precinct for the general election.
Sample ballots are on the Clarion County website.