Who are the candidates for city of Erie, county races in the May primary?
Tuesday was the filing deadline for candidates planning to run in the May 20 municipal primary.
The filing of nominating petitions helps bring into focus what the ballot will look like when voters head to the polls.
There are dozens of races in Erie County this year, including contests for Erie mayor; county executive; city council; county council; county judge; controller; sheriff; and clerk of records.
Here are some of the marquee races.
In the race for Erie mayor, three Democrats — incumbent Joe Schember, who is seeking a third four-year term, current Erie School Board member Daria Devlin and Sheila Woeger, a retired substitute teacher — submitted petitions and will be on the ballot in May.
There are two Republicans who filed nominating petitions: Matthew S. Thomas and Thomas Kinem.
Further, local public transit advocate Julie Minich has announced she plans to run for mayor as an independent. She will not be on the May primary ballot, but Minich intends to be on the ballot for the Nov. 4 municipal election.
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The primary winner will be a huge favorite in the November municipal election because of the city's more than 2-1 Democratic voter registration edge. No Republican has been elected mayor of Erie since Charles Williamson in 1961.
Four seats are on the ballot in the Erie City Council race, which will yield at least two new faces on the seven-member panel in 2026.
That is because council member Chuck Nelson and current council President Mel Witherspoon, both Democrats, are not seeking new four-year terms.
Nelson is seeking the Democratic nomination for city controller in the primary.
Witherspoon was appointed in January 2024 to the seat vacated by the January 2023 resignation of former Councilwoman Liz Allen, and that seat is on the ballot. But Witherspoon told the Erie Times-News in January that he will not launch a campaign.
Two other current council members, Democrats Jasmine Flores and Maurice Troop, submitted nominating petitions and are seeking re-election. Both were first elected in 2021 and are seeking their second four-year terms on the panel.
Other Democrats who submitted petitions in the City Council race are Erie County Councilman Andre Horton, who cannot see re-election to County Council because of county term limit rules; Deonte Cooley; Marilyn Pol, a former deputy city clerk; and Darrel Vandeveld.
Four Republican City Council candidates submitted petitions: Anita Fay; Yvet Anderson; Kimberly Hunter; and Tina Hiotis.
The significant Democratic voter registration edge in the city will likely be a factor in the City Council race as well. No Republican has served on City Council since John Evans, a CPA and certified financial planner, did so as an appointee between June 2012 and December 2013.
Evans had been the first Republican to serve on City Council since Denise Robison, who took office in 1990 and was the last GOP candidate elected to City Council.
Brandon Penn, president of the Apartment Association of Northwestern Pennsylvania, has announced plans to run for City Council as an independent. He will not be on the May primary ballot but is seeking a ballot slot in November.
Besides Nelson, the race for the Democratic nomination for city controller includes Nelson's council colleague Ed Brzezinski and former Erie County government employee Brooke Sanfilippo. All have submitted nominating petitions.
Republican Matt Strupczewski has also filed nominating petitions in the controller's race.
In the race for Erie County executive, Republican incumbent Brenton Davis filed a nominating petition to run for a second four-year term. No other GOP candidate will oppose Davis in the primary.
On the Democratic side, Perry Wood, who serves as executive director of the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority, and Christine Vogel, Donatos Pizza franchise owner, both filed petitions for county executive.
In the race for Erie County Council, three seats will be on the May ballot.
The 2nd District seat will be up for grabs, as incumbent Democratic Councilman Andre Horton, who's serving his third term, is term-limited and cannot run again.
Democrats Jim Wertz, former Erie County Democratic Party chairman, and James DePalma both filed petitions for the seat. Republican Renee Vendetti also filed a petition for the seat.
For the 4th District seat, Democratic incumbent Jim Winarski filed a petition to run for reelection. He'll face challenges from Democrats Michael Keys, Kevin Pastewka, Carl Anderson and Marcus Jacobs.
For the 6th District seat, Republican incumbent Charlie Bayle filed a petition to run for a second term. He'll face a challenge by Republican Scott Rastetter, who held the seat prior to Bayle.
Four school board seats are on the ballot. Two current Erie School Board members are seeking re-election to four-year terms: Jay Breneman and Zakaria Sharif.
Others who filed nominating petitions include Danielle Randall; Gary Horton; Hayan Aloush; Tywonn Taylor and Anthony 'Tony' Quinn.
One seat on the Erie County Court of Common Pleas is up for election this year.
Three candidates will compete for that spot, including Leigh Ann Orton, a Republican from North East who ran in 2023 and who is now the first assistant solicitor for Erie County.
The other candidates who have announced are Jeremy Lightner, one of two chief deputy district attorneys for Erie County, and Emily Mosco Merski, an Erie lawyer in private practice and a part-time assistant public defender for the county.
Contact Kevin Flowers at kflowers@timesnews.com. Follow him on X at @ETNflowers.
A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@gannett.com. Follow him on X @ETNRao.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Who's running for city of Erie, county races in the May primary?
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