We’re a nation of stats freaks. So here’s a couple more to pass along:
The office of U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said in a statement that the senator has now cast more than 1,000 votes on the floor.
And he’s the only member of the 10-member class who hasn’t missed a vote since being elected to the Senate in 2006, according to Casey.
The office also said he’s the first of that class to reach 1,000.
– John Guerriero
Meadville’s Paul Huber, a Republican candidate for Congress, will be at the Manufacturer & Business Association’s Conference Center, 2171 W. 38th St., this evening for a town hall meeting on health care.
The event begins at 5 p.m.
Huber is expected to voice opposition to the Affordable Health Care for America Act, which Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper of Erie supports. Huber is seeking the GOP nomination for the 3rd Congressional District seat in the 2010 election — a seat Dahlkemper currently holds.
–Kevin Flowers
Erie County Executive-elect Barry Grossman has named the members ofr his “merit selection committee,” a group that will recommend candidates for the county’s chief public defender position.
The nine-person committee is chaired by Erie lawyer Leonard Ambrose and also includes Dennis Tobin of the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office; former county public safety director Joseph Weindorf; Erie businessman Julio C. Reyes; federal public defender Thomas Patton; and lawyers Ronald DiNicola, Alicia Barney-Duck, Jeff Connelly and Edith Benson.
Grossman said the committee will solicit applications for the position and review those candidates. The committee will then recommend three candidates as finalists for the job, and Grossman will choose from those three names.
Current Public Defender Tony Logue has been told that he is welcome to submit his name for consideration, Grossman said.
–Kevin Flowers
Millcreek Supervisor Brian McGrath is doubly cursed when it comes to rooting for his favorite sports teams.
I’ve known for years that he is a fan of the Pittsburgh Pirates, which just endured a 17th consecutive losing season.
Now McGrath tells me he also roots for the Cleveland Browns, the NFL team that is going through another miserable season.
Ouch.
– John Guerriero
Erie County’s Voter Registration Office has posted full results from the Nov. 3 election on its website. They are still listed as “final unofficial” results, but you can view them here.
–Kevin Flowers
One of the oddities of our election code will come into play next Friday, when results finally will be known from some of the Nov. 3 municipal election races.
After the Erie County Election Office counted write-in votes this week, the results showed ties in several municipal races.
And when there is a tie, the election is decided by chance — either a flip of a coin or some other method.
In Erie County, the candidates draw numbered ping-pong balls, said Sharon Drayer, supervisor of the election office. The ball numbered 1 is the one to draw, she said.
The drawing will be held at noon. Stay tuned.
– John Guerriero
Final vote totals from the Erie County Courthouse gave Democrat Barry Grossman a 343-vote victory in the ultratight race for Erie County executive.
Grossman, of Fairview, garnered 26,211 votes to 25,868 for Greene Township’s Kerner, according to final vote totals.
Both men lauded each other at a news conference earlier today for running clean campaigns that stuck to the issues. They even shared a handshake — and a hug.
“You don’t have to degrade or demonize your opponent to win,” Grossman said.
Said Kerner, who fought back tears as he talked: “I’m extremely emotional right now. I put an extreme amount of time and effort into this. I hate losing, and it’s difficult to come up short.”
–Kevin Flowers
This might be the easiest blog post I’ve ever put up.
VOTE.
You only have a few more hours until the polls close today at 8 p.m.
– John Guerriero
Some kids and adults have a Halloween story to beat all.
About 2,600 children and adults were invited to trick or treat at the White House, and President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama greeted some of them, according to a pool report from USA Today.
Michelle Obama dressed as Catwoman, while other highlights included Press Secretary Robert Gibbs as Darth Vader and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice as Goofy, the report said.
In case you were wondering, President Obama didn’t get into a costume.
– John Guerriero
CeaseFirePA, a gun violence prevention organization, has endorsed Erie Mayor Joe Sinnott’s re-election bid.
Sinnott, a Democrat, is one of 12 Pennsylvania mayors or mayoral candidates endorsed by the group. Sinnott faces Republican Jack Anderson in Tuesday’s municipal election, and the incumbent is widely expected to easily win a second four-year term in the city’s top job.
A recent CeaseFirePA press release stated that the group chose to endorse mayors who have “taken a leadership role, standing up for local efforts to pass common sense reforms to reduce access to illegal handguns.”
Other mayors/candidates endorsed by the group include:
–Kevin Flowers
