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Lackawanna County Board of Elections certifies May 20 primary; public raises questions about special election timeline
Summary
The Lackawanna County Board of Elections approved the official canvass and certified the May 20, 2025 municipal primary results, hearing no challenges. During public comment, a resident asked when the county will follow a judicial ruling on the Home Rule Charter and whether a special election will be scheduled.
The Lackawanna County Board of Elections voted to certify the municipal primary election held May 20, 2025, after the county’s director of elections reported turnout and canvass results and confirmed no challenges or statewide recounts were filed.
“The municipal primary election was held on Tuesday, 05/20/2025,” Director of Elections Beth Hopkins said. “The voter turnout in Lackawanna County was 24.15%. The Democratic turnout was 33.41%. The Republican turnout was 19.37%.” Hopkins added: “There were a total of 35,539 ballots cast, and there were 22,669 write ins that were adjudicated during the official canvass that began on Friday, May 23 and was completed on May 29. There were no statewide recounts declared, and there were no challenges filed to the results in Lackawanna County.”
The board first approved the meeting minutes circulated earlier in the week by voice vote before hearing from Hopkins and then taking the certification vote. A motion identified on the record as motion 25-2007 was introduced to certify the May 20 results and the board approved the motion by voice vote.
During the public-comment period, a resident raised questions about whether the county will follow a judicial ruling related to the Home Rule Charter and whether a special election will be scheduled to fill a commissioner’s seat. The resident asked, “When are you going to decide if you're gonna follow the Home Rule Charter like the judges said to?” and warned, “I will be filing a lawsuit if you don't.” The resident also complained about difficulty finding meeting dates online and the three-minute public-comment timer.
The presiding judge said the board would proceed under applicable rules and noted timelines for candidate filing and ballots; a board representative stated decisions about scheduling for special elections must meet filing deadlines typically tied to primary and general election schedules. The resident and board representatives discussed that, by the commenter's estimate, decisions affecting the November ballot would need to be made by early September to meet filing deadlines.
The board then voted to enter an executive session to discuss a personnel matter. After the executive session concluded, the meeting was adjourned.
