Politics & Government
Stafford's June Primary Elections Chock Full Of Local Candidates
Three Republican mayoral candidates and 14 council candidates are in the race, while Democrats are also entering a full slate.
Stafford voters going to the polls in the June 2 primaries will have a host of candidates to choose from for mayor and council from both the Republican and Democratic parties, according to the Township Clerk’s office on Monday.
By the 4 p.m. filing deadline, three Republicans had announced their candidacy for mayor along with 14 candidates for council. A full slate of Democrats also filed for mayor and the six council seats that are up for grabs in the November general election.
The G.O.P. candidates, who have aligned themselves in three groups, are: “Moving Stafford Forward” with current mayor John Spodofora, along with current council members Sharon McKenna, Steve Fessler and Bob Kusznikow.
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Also on the Spodofora’s slate are local business owners Dave Taylor and Paul Marchal, both of whom ran against the mayor and council in the last election, and US Marine Corps Col. Alan Smith (ret.)
They recently received the endorsement of the Stafford Township Regular Republican Club.
The ticket “Republicans for Truth and Transparency” consists of the three remaining council members not endorsed by the G.O.P. club. Henry Mancini is running for mayor with Lori Wyrsch and Paul Krier seeking the nomination for council.
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The third Republican group seeking a primary win is the ticket entitled “Common Sense Conservatives.” Their mayoral candidate is Mike Mazzucca, who is running with council candidates Tom Stedman, Peter McCarthy, Eric Libenschek, Scott Jefferies, Greg Myhre and Bruce Haggis.
On the Democratic side, former councilwoman Joanne Sitek is running for mayor on the “Official Regular Democratic Organization” ticket with a council slate consisting of Kevin Temple, Joan M. Westvelt, Helen Cocuzza, Nicole Downs, Brian Corley White and Denise Pobicki.
The top vote getters in each party will then go on to the general election in November. The mayor and council members are elected to three-year terms on a concurrent basis in partisan elections, with terms of all current elected officials ending on December 31, 2015.
