Luzerne County Council

Last updated
Luzerne County Council
Type
Type
Term limits
3 consecutive terms, resets after leaving office
History
Founded2012 (2012)
Preceded by Board of County Commissioners
Leadership
Jimmy Sabatino, Democratic
Brittany Stephenson, Democratic
Structure
Seats11
2026-01-08-18-49-40-172524-c9baf5f08e5e867931455efe77cfb6da2cdb6e128cc31b61a45f068954aa97ed.svg
Political groups
  • Majority Party
   Democratic: 8 seats
  • Minority Party
   Republican: 3 seats
Length of term
4 years
Elections
Plurality-at-large voting
Last election
 November 4, 2025 (5 seats)
Next election
 Primary: May 18, 2027
General: November 2, 2027
(6 seats)
Meeting place
Luzerne County Courthouse flickr.jpg
Luzerne County Courthouse in Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
Website
Inside the county courthouse LuzerneCountyCourthouseRotunda.jpg
Inside the county courthouse

The Luzerne County Council is the governing body of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. The council meets at the Luzerne County Courthouse in Wilkes-Barre. There are eleven members on the assembly (eight Democrats and three Republicans). The chair is both the highest-ranking officer on the council and the head of county government for ceremonial purposes. [1] When the group is not in session, the officer's duties often include acting as its representative to the outside world and its spokesperson. The current chair is Jimmy Sabatino.

Contents

History

Luzerne County voters rejected home rule proposals in the past (once in 1974 and again in 2003). However, from 2008 to 2010, corruption plagued county government. Three county judges, a county commissioner, a clerk of courts, a deputy chief clerk, and a director of human resources faced criminal charges. These events persuaded the voters of Luzerne County to adopt a new form of government. On Tuesday, November 2, 2010, a home rule charter was adopted by a margin of 51,413 to 41,639. [2] [3]

The following year (in 2011), the first election for the new government was held. On Monday, January 2, 2012, the previous government (the board of county commissioners) was abolished and replaced with the new form of government (council–manager government). The first members of the Luzerne County Council were sworn in that same day. The first council chair was Jim Bobeck. [4]

In 2025, voters were presented with a proposed charter amendment to reduce the number of seats on county council from 11 to 9 and make other changes to council government, including giving council more direct control over the elections board. The amendment was broadly rejected by voters: nearly 61% of voters and 179 out of 186 precincts rejected the changes. [5]

Election process

The Luzerne County Council is elected by the voters of the county. Nearly half the council is up for election every two years. It rotates between five and six seats. Each council member is elected at-large (to a four-year term). They are limited to three consecutive terms. [6] [7] In the May primary, the major political parties (Democratic and Republican) select their top candidates for the general election. For example, those who place in the top five or six become the nominees of their party. Third party (or independent) candidates may also join the race. In the November general election, all political parties/candidates square off on the same ballot. Those who place in the top five or six will be elected or re-elected to council.

Current council members

The following members have been duly elected to county council by the voters of Luzerne County: [8]

Council memberTenurePartyPosition
Jimmy Sabatino2024–presentDemocratic Chair
Brittany Stephenson2024–presentDemocratic Vice Chair
Patty Krushnowski2024–presentDemocratic
Joanna Bryn Smith2024–presentDemocratic
Denise Williams2026–presentDemocratic
Dawn Simmons2026–presentDemocratic
Steven Coslett2026–presentDemocratic
Chris Belles2026–presentDemocratic
John Lombardo2022–presentRepublican
Lee Ann McDermott2020–presentRepublican
Harry Haas2012–2022, [9] 2024–presentRepublican

List of council chairs

The following chairs were elected by council:

List of council chairsTenurePartyNotes
1Jim Bobeck2012Democratic [10]
2Tim McGinley2012–2014Democratic [11] [12]
3Rick Morelli2014–2015Republican [13] [14]
4Linda McClosky Houck2015–2018DemocraticFirst female chair [15]
5Tim McGinley2018–2022Democratic [16]
6Kendra Vough2022–2024Republican [17]
7John Lombardo2024–2026Republican [18]
8Jimmy Sabatino2026–presentDemocratic [19]

Former council members

NameTenurePartyNotes
Elaine Maddon Curry2012–2014DemocraticShe did not seek re-election in 2013. [20]
James Bobeck2012–2016DemocraticBobeck served as the first council chair in 2012. He did not seek re-election in 2015. [21]
Kathleen M. Dobash2014–2018RepublicanShe did not seek re-election in 2017. [22]
Eileen M. Sorokas2014–2018DemocraticShe did not seek re-election in 2017. [22]
Rick Williams2012–2018IndependentWilliams did not seek re-election in 2017. He remains the only independent councilor. [23]
Edward A. Brominski2012–2019DemocraticHe resigned in January 2019 due to health issues. [24] Council appointed Patrick Bilbow to serve out the remainder of his term. [25]
Eugene L. Kelleher2012–2014, 2016–2019RepublicanKelleher lost re-election in 2013. He won a second non-consecutive term in 2015. Kelleher resigned in July 2019 due to relocating to Lancaster County. [26] [27] Former Councilman Rick Morelli was appointed by council to serve out the remainder of Kelleher's term. [28]
Patrick M. Bilbow2019–2020DemocraticIn February 2019, council appointed Bilbow to serve out the remainder of Edward Brominski’s term. [25] He lost re-election in 2019.
Rick Morelli2012–2016, 2019–2020RepublicanMorelli served as the third council chair from 2014 to 2015. He did not seek re-election in 2015. [21] In August 2019, council appointed Morelli to serve out the remainder of Eugene Kelleher’s term. [28]
Stephen A. Urban 2012–2020DemocraticHe did not seek re-election in 2019. [29]
Jane Walsh-Waitkus2016–2020DemocraticShe lost re-election in 2019. [30]
Walter L. Griffith, Jr.2020–2022RepublicanGriffith vacated his seat after becoming Luzerne County Controller in 2022. [31]
Linda McClosky Houck2012–2022DemocraticHouck served as the fourth council chair from 2015 to 2018. She was ineligible to pursue a fourth consecutive term due to term limits. [32]
Sheila Saidman2018–2022DemocraticShe lost re-election in 2021. [33]
Robert Schnee 2016–2022RepublicanSchnee vacated his seat after winning a special election for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2022. [34]
Matthew Vough2018–2022DemocraticHe lost re-election in 2021. [35]
Carl Bienias2022–2024RepublicanBienias was appointed by council in 2022 to serve the remainder of Walter Griffith's term. He lost his party's nomination in May 2023. [36]
Tim McGinley2012–2024DemocraticMcGinley twice served as council chair from 2012 to 2014, and again from 2018 to 2022. He was ineligible to pursue a fourth consecutive term due to term limits. [37]
Matthew Mitchell2022–2024RepublicanMitchell was appointed by council in 2022 to serve the remainder of Robert Schnee's term, who vacated his seat after winning a special election for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Mitchell lost re-election in 2023. [38]
Stephen J. Urban2012–2016, 2020–2024RepublicanUrban served two non-consecutive terms. He lost re-election in 2015 and again in 2023. [39]
Kendra M. Vough2020–2024RepublicanShe served as the sixth council chair from 2022 to 2024. Kendra Vough did not seek re-election in 2023. [40]
Brian Thornton2022–2026RepublicanDefeated in the 2025 general election. [41]
Gregory S. Wolovich2022–2026RepublicanDefeated in the 2025 general election. [41]
Kevin Lescavage2022–2026RepublicanDefeated in the 2025 primary election. [41]
Chris R. Perry2018–2026RepublicanDid not run for re-election. [42]

References

  1. ↑ "Luzerne County : Home Rule Charter". Archived from the original on 2018-02-04. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
  2. ↑ Voters say 'yes' to home rule - News. Standard Speaker (2010-11-03). Retrieved on 2013-07-23.
  3. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-01-11. Retrieved 2017-09-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ↑ "Luzerne County Council members sworn in - The Times Leader reports". 2 January 2012 – via www.youtube.com.
  5. ↑ "New Luzerne County charter rejected in 179 of 186 precincts". 21 November 2025.
  6. ↑ "Five of 11 Luzerne County Council seats up for grabs Tuesday". 2017-11-05.
  7. ↑ The Editorial Board. "Our choices for Luzerne County Council". Wilkes-Barre Citizens' Voice.
  8. ↑ "Luzerne County Council | Luzerne County, PA".
  9. ↑ "Harry Haas running for Luzerne County Council | Luzerne County, PA". 16 February 2023.
  10. ↑ Writer), By Michael P. Buffer (Staff. "Bobeck to step down as county council chairman". www.citizensvoice.com.
  11. ↑ Writer), By Michael P. Buffer (Staff. "New chairman takes over at County Council". www.standardspeaker.com.
  12. ↑ Administrator, System. "County Council elects new chair". www.standardspeaker.com.
  13. ↑ Writer), By Matt Bufano (Staff. "Morelli named chairman of Luzerne County council". www.standardspeaker.com.
  14. ↑ "Morelli Steps Down as President of Luzerne County Council". 7 January 2015.
  15. ↑ By Michael P. Buffer (Staff Writer) (2012-07-31). "Luzerne County Council divided over next chairperson – News". Standard Speaker. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
  16. ↑ "Tim McGinley appointed new Luzerne County Council chair". 2018-01-03.
  17. ↑ "Kendra Radle is new Luzerne County Council chair". 3 January 2022.
  18. ↑ "John Lombardo is new Luzerne County Council chair". 2 January 2024.
  19. ↑ "Jimmy Sabatino selected as new Luzerne County Council chairman". 5 January 2026.
  20. ↑ Writer), By Michael P. Buffer (Staff. "Haas will seek re-election; Maddon Curry will bow out to focus on Hazleton projects". www.citizensvoice.com.
  21. 1 2 "Luzerne County Manager Robert Lawton's job status up in the air". 2015-11-23.
  22. 1 2 Wellock, Bill. "Luzerne council seats will be open". www.standardspeaker.com.
  23. ↑ "Luzerne County Councilman Rick Williams won't run again". 2017-08-17.
  24. ↑ "Luzerne County Councilman Brominski resigning". January 2019.
  25. 1 2 "Pittston Area principal appointed to vacant Luzerne County Council seat". 20 February 2019.
  26. ↑ "Eugene Kelleher to resign from Luzerne County Council". 13 June 2019.
  27. ↑ "Luzerne County Councilman Eugene Kelleher offers parting words". 10 July 2019.
  28. 1 2 "Rick Morelli appointed to vacant Luzerne County Council seat". 13 August 2019.
  29. ↑ Mark, By Eric. "Urban won't seek re-election this year".
  30. ↑ "2 incumbents, 4 others win county council seats". 6 November 2019.
  31. ↑ "Application deadline nearing for Republican Luzerne County Council seat". 31 January 2022.
  32. ↑ "McGinley will be lone Democrat on Luzerne County Council". 4 November 2021.
  33. ↑ "McGinley will be lone Democrat on Luzerne County Council". 4 November 2021.
  34. ↑ "Schnee wins 116th District special election". April 6, 2022.
  35. ↑ "McGinley will be lone Democrat on Luzerne County Council". 4 November 2021.
  36. ↑ "Carl Bienias III announces run for Luzerne County Council". 5 March 2023.
  37. ↑ "Luzerne County officials honor McGinley in special ceremony". 12 December 2023.
  38. ↑ "Kingston resident appointed to Luzerne County Council". 14 June 2022.
  39. ↑ "OurCampaigns".
  40. ↑ "Luzerne County Democrats announce general election endorsements". 29 August 2023.
  41. 1 2 3 "Democrats regain majority on Luzerne County Council, flip 4 seats". 29 August 2023.
  42. ↑ "16 candidates running for Luzerne County Council". 11 March 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.