Challenger Campi bests incumbent Buck in Democratic race for coroner
The incumbent Bucks County coroner couldn't overcome the loss of her party's endorsement to hang onto to the elected post and win a spot on the November ballot in Tuesday's Democratic primary.
Meredith Buck will now finish her term at the end of year. During the past three-plus years she has overseen the investigation of more than 7,000 death cases, issued over 12,000 cremation permits, and shepherded the coroner's office through the COVID-19 pandemic.
But, a public feud, and lawsuit, over funding the office found Buck on the outs with the Democrats, who instead endorsed newcomer Patti Campi for the post. In 2021, Buck filed a suit against the Democratically controlled county commissioners board over funding for her office.
With all precincts reporting, Campi of Warwick won the primary election with 33,113 votes, compared to 21,151 votes for Buck of Chalfont. Some 119 write-in votes for other candidates were also counted.
The coroner's officer was one of the few contested races in this year's primary and featured the two registered nurses vying to be the candidate on the Democratic ticket. Campi now will face the Republican candidate for coroner, Charles Stockert of Hilltown, in the fall general election. Stockert did not face a GOP challenger Tuesday. He received 40,927 votes.
Campi said Wednesday morning that she was "really excited and honored to work with the commissioners and continue what they've accomplished." She said Buck reached out to her and she told Buck that if she is elected in November she would like to work with her to have a smooth transition. Campi also plans to continue Buck's efforts to have the coroner's office receive national accreditation.
Buck, who is both a nurse and attorney, sought re-election to the post she has held since January 2020.
"The bottom line is I've worked extremely hard as coroner and I have served the people of Bucks County proudly and honorably. I am extremely grateful and appreciate all the support I received and look forward to hopefully continuing to serve the people."
She graciously said she respected that the vote results are "the decision of the people of Bucks County."
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Campi is a both a nurse and the president of E.P. Donnelly Inc, a union carpentry firm. She said she graduated from the Abington Hospital School of Nursing and then received her bachelor of science in nursing from Jacksonville University in Florida. She has worked as a nurse in oncology at Penn Medicine and also as an emergency room nurse at Abington Hospital and most recently as a nurse at Doylestown Hospital.
Campi said she's a "numbers person" and is interested in data and believes she could use those skills in the coroner's office to keep track of addiction deaths and suicides to see how to prevent them.
Buck is a graduate of the Chestnut Hill Hospital School of Nursing and obtained her bachelor's degree summa cum laude in health care administration from the Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science, now Jefferson University. She earned her law degree at the Widener University School of Law. She is a practicing attorney in addition to serving as coroner.
She recently announced that she is seeking national accreditation for the coroner's office for the first time.
"I've dedicated the last few years to making the Bucks County Coroner's Office the best it can be," Buck said. "Now I'm ready to have national experts come in and independently verify that we meet the highstandards required for accreditation. Accreditation means Bucks County residents can have full confidence inthe quality and integrity of our death investigations."
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Campi bests Meredith Buck in Democratic primary for Bucks County coroner
