Donegal man elected to McGuffey School Board
Hunter S. Thompson, often described as the father of “gonzo journalism,” is credited with saying, “Half of life is just showing up.”
Frank Archambault of Donegal Township showed up Friday at the Washington County elections office, and he left as the newest member of McGuffey School Board.
Three candidates were tied with one write-in vote apiece for a two-year term on the nine-member board from Region I, for which no candidate had filed. The elections office settles tie votes by inviting the candidates to pick numbered spheres. The highest number, it was decided in advance, would be deemed the winner.
Elections office employees had permission to stand in for candidates Melissa Nardi and Penny Wyeth. Drawn on behalf of Nardi and Wyeth were a 5 and 3, respectively.
Archambault drew a 10.
Asked if he had cast that single write-in vote for himself, Archambault said, “Of course I did, sure. Why not? It’s America.”
A native of Boston, Archambault, a former truck driver, is now retired. The Donegal Township resident said he didn’t expect his write-in to land him a seat on the school board.
“This is all a very interesting odyssey for me,” he said, after receiving an election-related document to be notarized. “I’m being told what to do, and I’m acquiescing. It’s an Easter egg hunt. I’m looking forward to all of this.”
Charlie Kern also received a single vote, but he was disqualified because he lives outside of Region I, which includes Claysville and Blaine and Donegal townships.
In Buffalo Township, what initially appeared to be a tie for a supervisor’s position resulted in an apparent victory for Tim Doman over Bob Buchanan.
The candidates each received the same number of votes in the May primary, and a drawing placed Doman’s name on the ballot. Buchanan again waged a write-in campaign in the fall, and after the polls closed Nov. 5, both candidates had 190 votes, according to unofficial results.
The counting of absentee ballots, however, showed that the tie broke in Doman’s favor with 194 votes, while Buchanan’s total remained at 190.
In Avella School District, Michael Muhr won another four-year seat on the board with 13 write-in votes from Region II, which includes Hopewell Township and West Middletown, where Jennifer Newman also was re-elected.
In Burgettstown Area School District, Chris Matalik won a four-year term in Region II, which includes Burgettstown and the second, fourth and seventh precincts of Smith Township, with 29 write-in votes. No candidate’s name appeared on the ballot.
Voters in another community in the Burgettstown area, Hanover Township, had previously chosen to shrink the number of supervisors from five to three. Larry Spahr, Washington County elections director, said the State Elections Code and the Second-Class Township Code govern who gets what length of term on a board of supervisors in the next election following the reduction of the number of seats.
“It’s a restructuring of the entire board,” Spahr said.
The candidate with the most votes in the just-completed election, Herbert Grubbs, won a six-year term with 205 votes, followed by Kevin Lemmi, whose 201 votes won him a four-year term. David Duerr Sr., who garnered 192 votes, was, by law, assigned a two-year term.