Retired Union County election director recognized with House citation
LEWISBURG — Three state legislators on Tuesday honored a longtime election director who retired in Union County in December.
At Tuesday's public meeting of the Union County Board of Commissioners, state Reps. David Rowe, R-85, and Jamie Flick, R-83, were joined by Darwin Swope, the office manager of state Rep. Stephanie Borowicz, R-76, to present Greg Katherman with a House citation. Katherman, of Mifflinburg, retired in December after 16 years as the election director for Union County.
"Every time I ever heard anyone interact with the Union County election office, nothing but the highest of praise for Greg for all the amazing work he's done," Rowe said. "Obviously, in this era when the world of politics can be so vitriolic and hostile, I think it's more important than ever to know that people understand they can trust, and their elections are being run well locally."
Rowe praised the election office for being organized and counting and tracking ballots correctly.
"Faith in our local election is of the utmost importance when we look at getting people engaged on the political side," Rowe said.
Formerly employed in the banking industry for 28 years, Katherman was named election director on Jan. 29, 2009. Katherman, a member of the Central Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce, led the department through five presidential elections and the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Throughout his career, he demonstrated remarkable knowledge, ability and integrity in carrying out his many responsibilities, thus earning the respect and gratitude of all those who received the benefit of his tireless devotion to duty," according to the citation.
Katherman is congratulated on his "well-deserved retirement" and recognized for his "exemplary record of service in keeping with the highest ideal and traditions of this commonwealth," according to the citation.
Katherman said he didn't know anything about running an election office when he first started.
"It's been a great place to work, it's been great serving the people," Katherman said. "It's been a great ride."
Commissioner Jeff Reber also praised Katherman.
"It's been an honor to work with you, Greg," Reber said. "We've seen how respectful and courteous you are to anyone."
Katherman was replaced by deputy Election Director Laura Seward, who was hired on Sept. 11, 2023, as Katherman's deputy.
At Tuesday's meeting, the salary board approved the hiring of Kathryn Dye as a temporary part-time clerical office assistant for $15.80 an hour.
In other business, the commissioners approved:
* A five-year contract for $1,998 with the United States Business Registration as a service provider for Award Management Registration Filing Services in relation to federal grants.
* The 2025 Hazard Mitigation Plan for Union County that identifies where the vulnerabilities are within the county and assists with certain types of nonemergency disaster assistance.
* A reimbursement agreement with PennDOT for a county-owned bridge over White Deer Hole Creek on Old Mill Road in Gregg Township.
* A letter of resignation from adult probation officer Christopher Lavalle, effective March 3.
* The hiring of Shalyn Rager as a DRO Support Caseworker in Domestic Relations for $17.84 an hour; and Alysha Aikey as a part-time temporary deputy in the prothonotary's office for $21.40 an hour.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
an hour ago
GOP House Homeland chairman Green to retire from Congress early
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The House Homeland Security Committee's chairman, Republican Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee, announced Monday that he will retire from Congress once the House votes again on the sprawling tax and budget policy bill backed by President Donald Trump. In a statement, Green said he was offered a private sector opportunity that was 'that was too exciting to pass up' so he informed House Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday of his retirement plans. The move comes more than a year after Green announced he wouldn't run again in 2024, but changed his mind when fellow Republicans implored him to stick around. Green's next election would have been in 2026. Green voted for Trump's sweeping legislation when it passed the House last month. The bill is now in the Senate's hands, and would need to return to the House for agreement on any changes. Trump wants the bill on his desk for his signature by July 4. Green's delayed departure could help with the GOP's narrow margins in the House. Republican leaders need every vote they can get on their big tax bill, which they managed to pass last month by a single vote and will have to pass again once changes are made in the Senate. They now have a 220-212 majority. 'It was the honor of a lifetime to represent the people of Tennessee in Congress," Green said. "They asked me to deliver on the conservative values and principles we all hold dear, and I did my level best to do so.' Green's seat will be decided in a special election. The timing will depend on when he leaves office. Ahead of his 2024 reelection, Green had announced that February 2024 he would not run again. The decision was revealed a day after the impeachment of then-President Joe Biden's Homeland Security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. But many fellow Republicans had called on him to reconsider, and he jumped back into the running just two weeks later. He was unopposed in the Republican primary and then defeated Democrat Megan Barry — the former Nashville mayor who resigned in 2018 in scandal — by more than 21 percentage points in November 2024. Green, 60, has served since 2019 in the 7th Congressional District, which was redrawn in 2022 to include a significant portion of Nashville. The city was carved up three ways in the 2022 redistricting so Republicans could flip a Democratic district in Congress that had covered Music City, which they successfully did. Green previously served as an Army surgeon and in the state Senate and is from Montgomery County. Green flirted running for governor in 2017, but suspended his campaign after he was nominated by former President Donald Trump to become the Army secretary. He later withdrew his nomination due to criticism over his remarks about Muslims and LGBTQ+ Americans.
2 hours ago
Minnesota budget deal cuts health care for adults who entered the US illegally
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Adults living in the U.S. illegally will be excluded from a state-run health care program under an overall budget deal that the closely divided Minnesota Legislature convened to pass in a special session Monday. Repealing a 2023 state law that made those immigrants eligible for the MinnesotaCare program for the working poor was a priority for Republicans in the negotiations that produced the budget agreement. The Legislature is split 101-100, with the House tied and Democrats holding just a one-seat majority in the Senate, and the health care compromise was a bitter pill for Democrats to accept. The change is expected to affect about 17,000 residents. After an emotional near four-hour debate, the House aroved the bill 68-65. Under the agreement, the top House Democratic leader, Melissa Hortman, of Brooklyn Park, was the only member of her caucus to vote yes. The bill then went to the Senate, where it passed 37-30. Democratic Majority Leader Erin Murphy, of St. Paul, called it 'a wound on the soul of Minnesota,' but kept her promise to vote yes as part of the deal, calling it "among the most painful votes I've ever taken." Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, who insisted on maintaining eligibility for children who aren't in the country legally, has promised to sign the legislation, and all 13 other bills scheduled for action in the special session, to complete a $66 billion, two-year budget that will take effect July 1. 'This is 100% about the GOP campaign against immigrants,' said House Democratic Floor Leader Jamie Long, of Minneapolis, who voted no. 'From Trump's renewed travel ban announced this week, to his effort to expel those with protected status, to harassing students here to study, to disproportionate military and law enforcement responses that we've seen from Minneapolis to L.A., this all comes back to attacking immigrants and the name of dividing us.' But GOP Rep. Jeff Backer, of Browns Valley, the lead author of the bill, said taxpayers shouldn't have to subsidize health care for people who aren't in the country legally. Backer said California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, has proposed freezing enrollment for immigrants without legal status in a similar state-funded program and that Illinois' Democratic governor, JB Pritzker, has proposed cutting a similar program. He said residents can still buy health insurance on the private market regardless of their immigration status. 'This is about being fiscally responsible,' Backer said. Enrollment by people who entered the country illegally in MinnesotaCare has run triple the initial projections, which Republicans said could have pushed the costs over $600 million over the next four years. Critics said the change won't save any money because those affected will forego preventive care and need much more expensive care later. 'People don't suddenly stop getting sick when they don't have insurance, but they do put off seeking care until a condition gets bad enough to require a visit to the emergency room, increasing overall health care costs for everyone,' Bernie Burnham, president of the Minnesota AFL-CIO, told reporters at a news conference organized by the critics. Walz and legislative leaders agreed on the broad framework for the budget over four weeks ago, contrasting the bipartisan cooperation that produced it with the deep divisions at the federal level in Washington. But with the tie in the House and the razor-thin Senate Democratic majority, few major policy initiatives got off the ground before the regular session ended May 19. Leaders announced Friday that the details were settled and that they had enough votes to pass everything in the budget package.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
113 House Democrats vote against GOP resolution denouncing the antisemitic terrorist attack in Colorado
More than 100 House Democrats voted against a Republican-led resolution condemning the antisemitic terrorist attack in Boulder and Colorado's sanctuary state laws on Monday. The resolution, introduced by Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.), cleared the lower chamber in a 280-113 vote, with 75 Democrats joining Republicans to pass the measure. Democrats fumed over language in the resolution expressing 'gratitude to law enforcement, including US Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel, for protecting the homeland.' 3 House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., speaks with reporters about the spending and tax bill embraced by President Donald Trump and Republicans, at the Capitol in Washington, Friday, June 6, 2025. AP The National Republican Congressional Committee, the House GOP's campaign arm, charged that Democrats voting against the bill 'sided with terrorists over police officers and flat-out refused to condemn antisemitism.' 'Democrats have become the pro-terrorist, anti-cop, antisemitic caucus. And they're proud of it,' the NRCC wrote on X. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) slammed Evans as a 'joke' ahead of the vote. 'Who is this guy? He's not seriously concerned with combating antisemitism in America. This is not a serious effort,' Jeffries told reporters. 'Antisemitism is a scourge on America. It shouldn't be weaponized politically.' Evans shot back that the 'wildly offensive sentiment' expressed by Jeffries is 'why antisemitism persists.' 3 This image provided by the Boulder Police Dept. shows Mohamed Sabry Soliman. AP 'The Left is unserious about finding real solutions,' the congressman argued on X. 'Condemning terrorism is not a joking matter.' Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), who is Jewish and voted no on the resolution, argued on the House floor that the measure was being put forward to simply 'score political points.' 'You weren't here, Mr. Evans, last term, but there were about 10 antisemitism resolutions that effectively said the same thing solely to score political points,' Goldman said. 'We Jews are sick and tired of being used as pawns.' 3 Gabe Evans, R-Fort Lupton, speaks to reporters during a news conference on the steps of the Colorado Capitol in Denver on Thursday, May 29, 2025. In his floor speech, Evans stated: 'As a former police officer and Army veteran of the Global War on Terror, I know how Colorado's radical leftists leaders and laws prioritize illegal immigrants over public safety — allowing antisemitic terrorists like Mohammed Sabry Soliman to strike.' Soliman, an Egyptian national who overstayed his visa, allegedly used Molotov cocktails and a makeshift flamethrower during the June 1 attack targeting peaceful marchers who were calling for the release of Hamas-held hostages in Gaza. Fifteen people were injured in the firebombing, during which Soliman allegedly shouted, 'Free Palestine.' 'The passing of my resolution ensures we condemn all acts of antisemitism and affirms that the free and open collaboration between state and local law enforcement with their federal counterparts is key in preventing future attacks like this,' the congressman continued. A separate resolution introduced by Reps. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) and Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), who more generally denounced the uptick in antisemitic attacks in the US, passed in a 400-0 vote.
