Canonsburg area magistrate candidate’s residency questioned
Questions are being raised about the residency of a candidate running for Canonsburg area magistrate and whether he lives in Washington County or in neighboring Fayette.
Three Democrats and three Republicans filed separate challenges Tuesday hoping to have Charles “Chuckie” Tenny removed from the ballot as a cross-filed candidate for the district judge race that covers Canonsburg, Houston and North Strabane.
At the heart of the challenge are questions about whether Tenny lives in the Canonsburg Borough house he’s owned since 2001 and where he’s registered to vote, or if he actually resides in a Menallen Township home in Fayette County that he and his wife, Stacey, bought in 2021. Tenny has been registered to vote at the Canonsburg address since 2010, while his wife is currently registered at the Menallen Township residence, according to state election records.
Reached for comment Wednesday afternoon, Tenny said he has not yet been served with the challenges, so he was unsure what exactly the accusations were in the filings. However, he said he has an attorney ready to defend him and he’ll provide all the proof he needs to show that he lives at the Canonsburg address.
“I don’t have anything to hide. You can come to my place, look at my driver’s license and utility bills,” Tenny said. “I’ll gladly fight anybody in court to represent the loving people of North Strabane, Canonsburg and Houston as their next magisterial district court judge.”
Washington County’s real estate website shows Tenny as the owner of the Canonsburg Borough home, but he has not filed for homestead exemption at the property that’s available to homeowners who live at the property.
Asked by a reporter why he and his wife would be registered to vote in different counties, Tenny sidestepped the question.
“Our living styles aren’t anybody’s business, I don’t think,” Tenny said. “I’ll show you everything you want to see.”
Tenny, who is a registered Republican, cross-filed as both a Democrat and Republican for the May 20 primary election to run against incumbent District Judge James Saieva Jr., who also cross-filed to run in both parties. A third candidate, Ivan Casilli, filed paperwork to run in the Republican primary, although his candidacy is also being challenged with questions raised about the validity of 13 of the 108 signatures on his petition, with 100 needed to get on the ballot.
Registered Democrats James Singola, Frank Tatano and David Holliday filed the challenges against Tenny, while registered Republicans John Lombardo, Charles Walnoha and Jacob McCabe-Cavallo filed the challenges against both Tenny and Casilli.
Only two other challenges were filed in Washington County by Tuesday’s deadline, both of which were for supervisor races in Cecil Township. Democrat Michael Kazmarski is being challenged since his financial interest statement was placed in the township municipal office’s night drop box and retrieved by the secretary March 12 – the morning after the deadline – while Republican Daniel Ostrowski never submitted his financial statement to the township, according to the challenge.
The hearings will be heard before Senior Judge Katherine Emery in Courtroom #7 of the Washington County Courthouse beginning at 9:30 a.m. today. No election challenges were filed statewide or in Greene and Fayette counties.