Apr 24, 2026 By Mike Jones 5 min read

State Senate candidate Al Buchtan will remain on the ballot for a state GOP committee position in Washington County, but he won’t be able to vote for himself since county elections officials removed him from their voter rolls last week following two court decisions stating he’s a Greene County resident.

The Washington County elections board held a special meeting Thursday morning to decide whether Buchtan should remain on the ballot for the state committee position during the May 19 primary, but officials said they had no standing this late in the process to remove him.

The elections office sent Buchtan a “challenge affidavit” on April 16 asserting that he is not a Washington County resident, and he was removed from its voter registration list.

“The position of the election office is he’s a resident of Greene County and cannot vote in Washington County,” county solicitor Gary Sweat said at the meeting.

Buchtan rented a house in Canonsburg in October and has said that he spent most nights there while his wife, Melinda, and his stepdaughter remain at their family home near Carmichaels in Greene County. Buchtan previously said he moved only himself to Canonsburg to “scout out” the area to buy a new home before permanently moving his family there. Buchtan voted at his Canonsburg precinct during last November’s off-year election, and planned to do so again during next month’s primary.

But despite removing him from the voter rolls, Sweat said the state Department of State advised them it was too late to remove his name from the ballot for the position of Republican State Committee for Washington County.

“We do not have the legal authority to remove him at such a late date,” Sweat said.

The Republican Party of Pennsylvania contacted county officials last week asking them to review Buchtan’s eligibility to run for state committee in Washington County after a state Commonwealth Court judge ruled April 2 that he must update his candidate filing to list himself as a Greene County resident. The decision was upheld by the state Supreme Court in a 4-3 ruling on April 10, meaning Greene County will appear below Buchtan’s name on the ballot when running against three-term incumbent state Sen. Camera Bartolotta, R-Carroll, in next month’s primary election.

Three Republican electors from the district were previously unsuccessful in attempting to get Buchtan removed from the ballot in the race for the 46th State Senate District, which includes all of Washington and Greene counties, and the southern sliver of Beaver County.

“The political swamp illegally removed me from the Washington County voter rolls despite my name still being on the ballot in Washington County for Republican State Committee. This is just another dirty trick by the Bartolotta-DeWeese political hit squad to deny Republican voters a choice,” Buchtan said in a written statement, referring to Bartolotta’s marriage to former Democratic state representative H. William DeWeese. “They’re doing everything to deny Republican voters choices in the election.”

Buchtan said he may have no choice now but to “re-register” to vote in Greene County despite his assertion that he is currently living at the Canonsburg rental home.

A spokesperson for Bartolotta’s campaign did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment on Thursday’s special election board meeting.

“There’s no question that Mr. Buchtan does not live in Washington County,” said county Election Board Chairman Nick Sherman, who is also chairman of the county’s board of commissioners. “There’s no question Mr. Buchtan lives in Greene County. … But there’s no legal authority to remove him (from the state committee ballot).”

Even if Buchtan were to win the state committee position, Tom King, who serves as special counsel for the Republican Party of Pennsylvania, said they would not seat him because a resident of Greene County cannot serve as a committeeman from Washington County. The state GOP had requested the Washington County elections board – which includes Sherman and fellow Republican Commissioner Electra Janis and Democratic Commissioner Larry Maggi – to review Buchtan’s eligibility to run for state committee.

“Our bylaws clearly state that a member of the state committee (representing Washington County) must be a registered elector of Washington County,” King said. “It’s just not possible. … You’ve got to live in the county you’re (running for) in order to serve.”

During the hearing, two people spoke during public comment asking the elections board to remove Buchtan from the state committee ballot.

Washington County Prothonotary Laura Hough, who is also running for the state committee position, objected to him being placed on the ballot since two court orders stated he is a Greene County resident.

“There have been two court decisions that he is not a Washington County resident, thus cannot run for state committee (from Washington County),” Hough said.

Dave Ball, who is the former chair of the Washington County Republican Committee, went even further, asking the elections board to investigate Buchtan’s voter registration and vote in last year’s election, and possibly referring the matter to District Attorney Jason Walsh for a criminal investigation.

But it’s unlikely Walsh would be able to accept the case since he has endorsed Bartolotta in her bid for re-election. Walsh said Thursday he was unaware of the possible referral until contacted by a reporter requesting comment on the matter.

“No one has passed along anything to me. First, I would have to get something and then make a decision off of that,” Walsh said. “The first I’m hearing about this is you calling (and) I don’t have information on that. If it is what you’re saying, it would not be me. I would not be involved.”

Any referral would likely be passed along to the state Attorney General’s office for review.

May 4 is the last day to register to vote for the May 19 primary election in Pennsylvania.