Democratic candidates gather

Yahoo

17-04-2025

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Democratic Party candidates for Johnstown City Council and mayor explained their reasons for seeking office and general political goals Wednesday during a meet-and-greet at Bottle Works.
The primary for mayor is a head-to-head race between two current council members – Laura Huchel and Deputy Mayor the Rev. Sylvia King.
Four regular four-year seats are being contested. Five Democrats are running for those positions. A special election is also being held for the remaining two years of a seat that became vacant when Michael Capriotti resigned to become assistant city manager.
'To have this many people running is fantastic. … I think it's a great way to have all the candidates come together and put their ideas out there so that more people can get involved and hear them,' Cambria County Democratic Party Chairwoman Nina Licastro said.
Each candidate was given five minutes to address the audience.
Council candidates spoke first, then Huchel, followed by King.
• Huchel, a Princeton University graduate, was the first millennial ever elected to Johnstown City Council. She has been active with the City of Johnstown Planning Commission, Johnstown Redevelopment Authority, arts community and Johnstown Animal Welfare Society.
'Before I was elected to council, I promised different conversations would happen around the council table,' Huchel said.
'I spent four years on council – until Taylor (Clark's) appointment (to council a few weeks ago) – as the youngest person on council by 20 years. So there was a different perspective going on. I was very pleased to bring that perspective and to hear the perspectives of others.'
• King is pastor at Christ Centered Community Church. She has been involved with numerous organizations, including Greater Johnstown United Neighborhoods Association, Cambria County Drug & Alcohol Program, NAACP Johnstown Chapter, Vision Together 2025, and Community Foundation for the Alleghenies.
'All these things and more have uniquely qualified me to serve as the mayor for the people of Johnstown,' King said. 'I offer wisdom, knowledge, experience, servant leadership and grace. But most of all I offer myself. I am the Johnstown of yesterday. I am the Johnstown of today. And prayerfully I will be your Johnstown of tomorrow.'
The following council candidates are listed in the order that they spoke.
• Clark was appointed by council to fill Capriotti's term through the end of this year before the special election winner takes on the position for the remaining two years, beginning in 2026. Clark, who co-owns Coney Island Lunch and high-end men's clothing store Miller's of Johnstown, said he wants to promote transparency, honesty and small business development.
'When I say 'honesty,' I'm not saying that former council members, or city managers or anything like that have been dishonest,' Clark said. 'What I'm saying is I am going to be honest with you. And what I mean by that is if I don't know something I'm going to tell you. … But what I can promise you that I am going to do is I'm going to find out and I'm going to get back to you.'
• Gregory Brown has been involved in real estate, web development and data analytics.
'I'm very versatile,' Brown said. 'I expect people to talk respectfully and legitimately to themselves and to others, too. … You've got to offer to people resources, where they can go for help, what's going on in the city, what's not going on in the city, how they can get involved. It's just a lot.
If elected, he plans 'to collaborate with people, and listen and see what I can do.'
• Lorraine Brandon-Taylor owns America's Tax Office.
'I have had the opportunity of working with people in all income brackets in this city,' Brandon-Taylor said.
'I've had the ability to listen to them, understand where they're coming from, and I am able to hear the voices that are unheard.'
One of her goals would be to address the amount of 'misguided information' in the city with hopes of providing better services to residents.
• Samuel Barber is a former city codes enforcement officer.
'I'm running for City Council because I believe in the promise of our city and the power of its people,' Barber said. 'I'm not here to make any empty promises or offer quick fixes. I'm here to work with you, to roll up our sleeves and do the real work of restoring Johnstown to a strong, and safe and thriving community we all know it can be.'
• Jasmine LaRue is a published author who said she wants 'to be a change agent for the city.'
'My goal is to bring practical solutions for everyday problems,' LaRue said. 'I want to honor those that the city was built on, which were our elderly, our senior citizens, who worked the steel mills, who worked the coal mines, and also honoring our young people, and if we honor our young people and the elderly and our senior citizens who built the city, everyone else in the middle would flourish.'
Cambria County Court of Common Pleas Judge Tamara Bernstein and Cambria County District Attorney Greg Neugebauer also attended the event. Bernstein has a retention vote in the general election. Neugebauer is running unopposed for a judge position. He cross-filed.
The Republican Party field of City Council candidates consists of Joseph Taranto, Charlene Stanton, Nick Spinelli and Mike Hamacek. Republican John DeBartola is running for mayor.