Find election results for Centre County judge, commissioners and other countywide races
In Tuesday’s primary election, registered Democrat and Republican voters across Pennsylvania chose who they want to appear on the November ballot for several races.
In Centre County, the only contested countywide race was for Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, in which Gopal Balachandran and Julia Rater were cross-filed candidates. Following a competitive — and expensive — campaign season for both candidates, unofficial election results show Rater receiving the most votes on both the Democrat and Republican side.
In a phone interview Tuesday night, she said she is ready to hit the ground running on day one.
She thanked those who voted for her and said she is committed to doing a good job as a Centre County Judge of the Court of Common Pleas.
“Everybody should know that when they come before me as a judge, I will have open eyes and open ears, and I will make a fair and balanced decision,” Rater said.
Rater said she really likes her current practice, partners and the people she works with at McQuaide Blasko, so she’s going to be sad to leave them. But she’s looking forward to the new opportunity.
“I’m really looking forward to being able to listen to both sides of the case and make a decision based on the facts and the law of the case. As opposed to being in the courtroom representing only one side of it. So I’m really looking forward to being able to bring my balanced approach to our system,” Rater said.
Right now the court is down a judge, as former President Judge Pamela A. Ruest retired and is now serving as a senior judge 10 days a month. They’ve been trying to fill the other 10 days/month with visiting judges, Rater said, but it’s been sporadic.
She isn’t certain when she’ll be sworn in, as it’s possible the governor might move for an earlier appointment, she said.
“That may happen so that we can get our court back up and running to full speed. I’m not certain. It might not be until January that I’m sworn in,” Rater said.
Either way, she said she’s committed to the community, as she’s been part of it for so long. She is looking forward to bringing “all that I have to support our community.”
Gopal Balachandran, a current State College Borough Council member, and his campaign thanked his supporters and congratulated Rater in a text message just after midnight Wednesday.
“We want to thank all of our supporters for their incredible hard work and dedication. It appears that we will fall short in this election. We want to congratulate Julia Rater. We wish her well,” his campaign said.
Below are the unofficial results as of 12:21 a.m. Wednesday, with all precincts reporting in-person votes and 86 of 87 reporting mail votes.
Democratic primary
Gopal Balachandran: 6,041
Julia Rater: 6,567
Republican primary
Gopal Balachandran: 1,494
Julia Rater: 8,482
In the Centre County Commissioners race, the top two Democrat and Republican vote-getters will appear on the general election ballot in November. At that time, voters will pick their top three choices to be the board of commissioners.
Below is a breakdown of unofficial election results for commissioners, as well as other countywide races.
Centre County Commissioner
Democratic primary
Amber Cistaro Concepcion: 10,514
Mark Higgins: 10,804
Republican primary
Steven Dershem: 9,635
Marie Librizzi: 6,366
Centre County Controller
Democratic primary
Jason Moser: 11,381
(There were 1,858 Republican write-ins, but the results do not currently show who was written in, how many people were written in, or how many votes each write-in received.)
Centre County Coroner
Democratic primary
Scott A. Sayers: 11,712
(There were 418 Republican write-ins, but the results do not currently show who was written in, how many people were written in, or how many votes each write-in received.)
Centre County Prothonotary
Democratic primary
Jeremy S. Breon: 11,466
(There were 374 Republican write-ins, but the results do not currently show who was written in, how many people were written in, or how many votes each write-in received.)
Centre County Recorder of Deeds
Democratic primary
Robert Zeigler: 11,356
Republican primary
Joseph L. Davidson: 9,744
Centre County Register of Wills
Republican primary
Christine Millinder: 9,904
(There were 381 Democrat write-ins, but the results do not currently show who was written in, how many people were written in, or how many votes each write-in received.)
Centre County Sheriff
Republican primary
Bryan Sampsel: 10,384
(There were 567 Democrat write-ins, but the results do not currently show who was written in, how many people were written in, or how many votes each write-in received.)
Centre County Treasurer
Democratic primary
Colleen Kennedy: 11,546
Republican primary
Justin Behrens: 9,376
MAGISTERIAL DISTRICT JUDGE DISTRICT 49-03-03
Democratic primary
Allen W. Sinclair: 688
Republican primary
Allen W. Sinclair: 1,168
MAGISTERIAL DISTRICT JUDGE DISTRICT 49-02-01
Democratic primary
Casey McClain: 4,000
Republican primary
Casey McClain: 2,207
