A crowded field of eight candidates seeking two open seats on the Berks County Court of Common Pleas was narrowed to three by primary voters on Tuesday.

And voters clearly liked the female candidates more, setting up a three-way contest in November among the three female attorneys on the ballot.

Berks County First Assistant District Attorney M. Theresa Johnson, a registered Democrat, rode her reputation as a tough, no-nonsense prosecutor to win nominations in both the Democratic and Republican primaries

Final but unofficial results show Johnson topping the Democratic primary with 6,513 votes. Johnson, 47, of Brecknock, also finished second in the Republican primary with 5,092 votes, virtually assuring her a seat on the Berks County bench after the November general election.

The top vote-getter in the Republican primary was Madelyn Fudeman, 56, of Cumru, who finished with 6,370 votes. This was Fudeman’s second attempt to win a seat on the Berks bench.

The second Democratic nomination went to Eleni Dimitriou-Geishauser, 42, of Exeter, who finished with 5,377 votes in the Democratic primary.

All eight candidates cross-filed in both the Democratic and Republican primaries. By winning the second GOP nod, Johnson prevented James A. Smith, 43, of Richmond, from advancing to the November election. Smith, making his first election run, finished with 4,972 in the GOP primary.

The other Republican candidates were John Muir, 45, of Lower Heidelberg, who finished with 4,840 votes in the GOP primary, Peter Schiaroli, 53, of Reading with 1,721 votes, and Mahlon Boyer, 35, of Exeter, with 1,151 votes.

The third Democrat in the race was Patrick Barrett, 53, of Maidencreek, who finished with 3,233 in the Democratic primary. Fudeman, a registered Republican, made a strong showing in the Democratic primary, receiving 5,129 votes.

There are openings on the Berks County Court because Judge Linda K.M. Ludgate retired in December and Judge Peter W. Schmehl will retire in January.

Judges serve 10-year terms, then face a retention vote to stay on the bench for another 10 years. The current annual salary is $173,271.

Berks County Treasurer

The only other contested countywide primary race on Tuesday was for the Republican nomination for Berks County treasurer. Dennis Adams, 61, of Amity, easily won the race with 9,042 votes, defeating Pat Lupia, 53, of Muhlenberg, who finished with 4,108 votes. There was no Democrats on the ballot so unless a third-party candidate emerges in November, Adams will succeed current Treasurer Nelson H. Long, a Republican who did not seek re-election.

The revolving door continues to spin at the Berks County Republican Committee as Chairman Royal Furer abruptly announced this week he was stepping down after just 10 months in the leadership post.

Keeping a chairman has been a problem for Berks County Republicans in recent years. 

The tumult in party leadership has coincided with loses in countywide elections. Republicans lost the district attorney's office they held for decades and also lost a county row office.

Give Furer credit for reaching out to the growing Latino community in Berks County during his brief tenure as party chairman, but his reason for stepping down (work responsibilities) is pretty weak considering he's in the same job he had when he ran for the party chairman post.

Berks County Republican Committee Vice Chairwoman Christine Gordon told a local newspaper she has no interest in taking over the top post, so it will be interesting to see who emerges as the county leader in the coming month.

Furer defeated two other candidates in July 2012 to win the county leadership post: Reading entrepreneur Jim McHale, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2011, and John A. Fielding, an attorney in private practice and longtime member of the Antietam School Board.

Berks County Republican Committee chairman resigns

Opa! Greek food, culture celebrated at Berks County festival

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Taxpayers would benefit tremendously if Pennsylvania amended a Prevailing Wage Act that forces local and county government to pay high union wages for public projects, often sending work to out-of-area firms.

"House Bill 1329 would allow county dollars to be used more effectively for these projects, as well as, reduce the pressure on local property tax dollars. We encourage our state representatives to vote yes on House Bill 1329," according to all three Berks County commissioners, including the board's lone Democrat.

Berks Commissioners endorse House Bill 1329

Pennsylvania State Rep. Mark Gillen (R-Berks) will host a Town Hall Forum on Thursday, Dec. 1, to facilitate a discussion between Met-Ed and constituents of the 128th Legislative District who lost power following the October snowstorm.

Gillen to Host Town Hall Forum Dec. 1 to Discuss Utility Response to Snowstorm

While PECO is stepping up to help customers avoid future power outages, not a peep out of Met-Ed, which left tens of thousands of Berks County customers in the dark for up to a week.

PECO to spend $2M in Chesco to reduce outages - pottsmerc.com

Familiar names will continue to lead Berks County government in 2012 and beyond as voters re-elected every incumbent on the ballot for countywide offices on Tuesday.

All three incumbent commissioners — Republicans Mark C. Scott and Christian Y. Leinbach and Democrat Kevin S. Barnhardt — won new four-year terms to the three-member board. The odd-man out was Democrat David J. Batdorf, who finished a distant fourth.

Leinbach, who won his second term, was the top vote-getter with 28,958 votes, followed by Scott (who won a fifth term) with 27,556 and Barnhardt (winning a second term) with 22,973. Batdorf, making a second run for a commissioner’s seat, trailed with 17,392 votes.

The votes are final but unofficial until elections officials certify the numbers.

The most closely watched race in Berks this year was for register of wills, with incumbent Republican Larry Medaglia Jr. facing a well-financed challenge from Reading attorney Bernardo Carbajal.

Medaglia received 30,067 votes to win a fifth four-year term. Carbajal, who accused Medaglia of running up large deficits in the register of wills office, trailed with 19,368 votes.

Berks County Democrats perceived Medaglia as vulnerable after he lost a special election earlier this year for a vacant state Senate seat held by the late Sen. Mike O’Pake. Medaglia lost that race in the heavily Democratic 11th Senate District to former Berks County Commissioner Judy Schwank, but showed his popularity with voters countywide by easily defeating Carbajal.

In the race for Berks County sheriff, incumbent Republican Eric J. Weaknecht easily defeated Democrat Daniel P. Billings to win a second term. Weaknecht finished with 33,433 votes to 17,629 for Billings.

Weaknecht has served in the Berks County sheriff's department for 26 years, beginning his career in 1984 as a deputy sheriff.

Billings was a 27-year veteran of the Wyomissing Police Department and is currently the director of security and transportation for St. Joseph Medical Center.

All the other row office races on Tuesday's ballot were uncontested:

• Berks County District Attorney John T. Adams, a Democrat, received 37, 346 votes to win a second term.

• Recorded of Deeds Frederick C. Sheeler, also a Democrat, finished with 34,743 votes to win a second term.

• Berks County Controller Sandy Graffius, a Republican, received 35,512 votes to win a third term.

• Clerk of Courts James P. Troutman, also a Republican, finished with 37,996 votes to win his seventh term.

Four Berks County Court of Common Pleas judges seeking retention for an additional 10 years on the court were approved by the voters.

Judge Peter W. Schmehl received 28,875 "yes" votes to 9,086 "no" votes for retention. Judge Jeffrey K. Sprecher received 26,905 "yes" votes to 9,500 “no” votes. Judge Mary Ann Campbell received 26,725 "yes" votes to 9,688 "no" votes. Judge Thomas G. Parisi received 26,642 "yes" votes to 9,755 "no" votes.

Without power since Saturday afternoon - except for a brief restoration overnight Sunday only to lose power again Monday morning. The power came back today ... but for how long?

Met-Ed Makes Restoration Progress Following Severe Snowstorm

More than 30 hours without electricity, a refrigirator and freezer full of spoiled food and the best Met-Ed can do is offer customers two bags of ice and four gallons of water?

Met-Ed Makes Water and Ice Available to Customers

The acclaimed documentary film 'Waiting for 'Superman' will be shown for free on Sunday, Sept. 25, at Albright College in Reading, PA, followed by a panel discussion on the American education system.

The film begins at 5:15 p.m. in Klein Lecture Hall, followed by the panel discussion at 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

The panel will be Louis Shucker, an attorney in private practice and a school board member, and Thomas Beveridge, a retired elementary principal from Pottsville, Pa., who supports charter schools. Joseph Yarworth, Ph.D., chair and assistant professor of education at Albright, will serve as moderator.

Film and Panel Discussion to Examine America's Public Education System

An event designed to recognize first responders in Berks and Montgomery counties has been rescheduled because so many first responders are busy helping with flood conditions in the region.

HonorFest 2011 was scheduled to take place today at First Energy Stadium in Reading, but with so many police, firefighters and ambulance crews assisting victims of this week's flooding, the organizers decided to move the event to Saturday, Oct. 1.

For more information, visit www.Honorfest.com

Pennsylvania Voter Hall of Fame Inducts 345 Members from Berks County

For more information, visit www.honorfest.com

From an editorial in The Pottstown Mercury:

A legislative forum was held Monday at Daniel Boone Middle School for discussion of tax proposals — a pretty dry topic for a pleasant summer night.

But the forum brought out a full house — nearly 400 people — to listen intently to proposals for tax reform that have been talked about in Harrisburg for 40 years.

Berks County residents demand Pennsylvania eliminate school property taxes. So what's wrong with the rest of the state?

Read the full editorial at the link below:

Berks Countians understand need for tax reform - pottsmerc.com

250 turn out for tax reform session in Amity - pottsmerc.com

WHAT: State Rep. David Maloney (R-Berks) will host a town hall meeting to provide information on efforts to reduce and/or eliminate school property taxes. He has often referred to Berks County as "ground zero" in the property tax debate, and is holding this meeting to update constituents on the challenges facing the state Legislature in dealing with this issue.

WHO: Maloney will be joined by other members of the General Assembly, including the co-chairmen of the School Property Tax Relief Caucus, Reps. Jim Cox (R-Berks) and Seth Grove (R-York), as well as Reps. Mark Gillen (R-Berks), Tom Quigley (R-Montgomery), Marcie Toepel (R-Montgomery) and Doug Reichley (R-Berks/Lehigh).

WHEN: Monday, Aug. 29, 7 p.m.

WHERE: Daniel Boone Middle School auditorium, 1845 Weavertown Road, Douglassville.

LIVE WEBSTREAMING: The meeting may be viewed through Maloney's website, www.RepMaloney.com

State Rep. David M. Maloney (R-130th Dist.) will host a school property tax forum on Monday, Aug. 29, at the Daniel Boone Middle School Auditorium in Amity Township.

The event runs from 7 to 9 p.m. and is open to the public.

"I have long said that Berks County is "Ground Zero" for the debate over school property taxes. It is the issue I hear about most frequently from constituents," Maloney said in a press release announcing the forum.

From the release:

"Our agenda for Aug. 29th is to lay out to the public where we are at this point in time in the fight to reduce and eliminate school property taxes in Pennsylvania. Several of my State House colleagues and I will present the most current data we have and discuss the challenges we face in our 130th District and statewide."

State Reps. Seth Grove, R-York, and Jim Cox, R-Berks, who are both co-team leaders for the House Majority Policy Committee will be on hand as well as Reps. Doug Reichley R- Berks/Lehigh, Marcy Toepel, R-Montgomery, and Mark Gillen, R-Berks, who will all participate in the forum.

"We have a lot of information to put forward and we will talk about previous tax relief efforts like legalized gaming and Act 1," Maloney said. "We will talk about school district growth versus state funding over the last 10 years. At the end of the presentation we will take questions."

State lawmakers from Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties have been pushing for the elimination of school property taxes for years, Maloney noted.

"No two counties in Pennsylvania are alike as we all struggle with higher school property taxes," Maloney said. "In some parts of Pennsylvania, school property taxes are not an issue, but they are a problem here. We have information and numbers that most people have not seen and it looks at school property taxes on a statewide view. I felt it was necessary to share this data. There are hot spots in Pennsylvania where this is a serious concern. We in the southeast live in a hot spot."

"Part of my purpose for this event is to also tell people that we will continue to work to correct the problems with the school property tax system," Maloney said.

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