DA race still on under new court ruling

As it currently stands, Luzerne County’s district attorney race will be on the Nov. 2 ballot for a two-year term, with current DA Sam Sanguedolce as the lone contender.

Based on a flurry of recent legal briefs and arguments presented in a hearing Thursday, Chester County Senior Judge Robert J. Shenkin issued an order denying a preliminary injunction that attempted to stop the county Election Board from placing the race on the ballot.

County council and the DA’s Office sought the injunction as part of litigation they filed against the election board in county court last month over differing interpretations of new state legislation involving DA seats.

A timely ruling was needed because proofing of the Nov. 2 ballot is already underway, said county Administrative Services Division Head David Parsnik.

Nov. 2 absentee ballots already have been mailed to overseas military voters, and the county election bureau plans to start sending mail ballots the second week of October to voters who requested them, said county Election Director Bob Morgan.

However, Thursday’s ruling is not the final say on the matter.

Judge Shenkin could ultimately issue a different decision on whether an election should be held when he rules on the final injunction as adjudication continues, but it’s unclear when that process will be completed. The judge could void the election if he later determines it should not have been held, attorneys have said.

There’s also a possibility council and the DA could appeal the preliminary injunction ruling to Commonwealth Court.

Councilwoman Kendra Radle, who is serving as a council liaison regarding the litigation, said council’s outside legal counsel, Stevens & Lee, informed her it will be reviewing the new court order and advising council on options to proceed. Radle said the firm also stressed the judge has not yet ruled on the merits of the case.

The legal dispute centers on a new state statute that kicked in when Sanguedolce filled the seat vacated by prior DA Stefanie Salavantis in March.

It says the first assistant DA serves “until the first Monday in January following the next municipal election occurring not less than 90 days after the occurrence of the vacancy.”

The election board’s outside legal counsel — Selingo Guagliardo LLC — says the next municipal election is Nov. 2. If an election is not held next month, it argues the seat now held by Sanguedolce will again become vacant the first Monday in January, requiring his first assistant to be appointed DA.

However, the council/DA legal filings assert the race cannot be on the ballot until the next odd-numbered municipal election year — 2023 — so county voters will have an opportunity to select nominees in a primary election. The DA’s Office is represented by Kleinbard LLC.

Outside counsel for the election board said the law allows political parties/bodies to nominate contenders since it was too late for the race to be in this year’s primary, but the other side disputes this interpretation.

Although the county Republican Party vehemently disagrees with the election board’s decision, it nominated Sanguedolce as its Nov. 2 DA candidate. County Democrats were unable to come up with a nominee, blaming candidates’ reluctance due to the pending litigation.

The judge and attorneys participated in Thursday’s hearing remotely, with their online session broadcast on a screen at the courthouse in Wilkes-Barre.

Sanguedolce watched the proceeding in the courtroom along with the media and other observers and expressed disappointment over the decision.

While he is assured to win the seat next month, election to a two-year term will drastically reduce the time he can serve.

The county’s home rule charter imposes a three-term limit for DA, which would be a maximum 12 years with four-year terms. However, his appointment this year also counts as a term under the charter, which means winning a two-year term this year and a four-year re-election in 2023 would limit him to less than seven years.

Weighing in on the matter Thursday, county Councilman Walter Griffith sent an email to his council colleagues saying the legal challenge must proceed so the DA “does not get short-changed on his terms in office.”