Former Allentown School Board director launches Lehigh County executive campaign

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A former Allentown School Board director has launched a campaign for Lehigh County executive, setting up a showdown in the Republican primary this spring.

Mike Welsh, owner of AC Thompson Insurance in Allentown, kicked off his candidacy in a news release Monday.

Welsh was elected to Allentown School Board in 2013 and resigned in 2017.

If elected county executive, Welsh said, he would stick up for taxpayers, support law enforcement and restore common sense to county government.

“Lehigh County has given me incredible opportunities," he said. "It’s where I’ve raised my family, run a small business and served my community both in and out of office.

"Now, as our county grapples with new challenges and faces an uncertain future, it’s time for a steady hand and strong leadership."

Welsh also said he would end Lehigh County's status as a sanctuary county, a point of contention between the federal government and local officials.

Under current practices, Lehigh County will not hold an inmate beyond their release date should ICE issue a detainer unless there's also a warrant.

The practice stems from a federal court case where Lehigh County held Ernesto Galarza at Lehigh County Jail for three days after he posted bail.

ICE mistakenly believed Galarza, a legal resident of New Jersey, was illegally in the country. Galarza later sued, and a federal judge ruled the county violated Galarza's constitutional rights because the ICE request had no legal standing on its own.

Lehigh County footed a $95,000 payout to Galarza to settle the case.

Other county executive candidates

In his campaign announcement, Welsh took aim at state Rep. Josh Siegel, the only Democratic candidate to announce a campaign for Lehigh County executive so far.

Welsh noted that Siegel has mounted five political campaigns in seven years, and completed only a two-year term as a state representative in that time.

He also tied Siegel to what he called far-left initiatives such as having social workers respond to 911 calls, defunding the police and "decolonizing the education system."

"Make no mistake, Josh Siegel is an extremist, an opportunist, and a danger to the people of Lehigh County,” Welsh said.

In a prepared statement, Siegel swung back, questioning if Welsh would be a local rubber stamp for President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, the billionaire he appointed to slash the federal government. Siegel said Welsh was the only candidate with a record of defunding local government, noting Welsh voted to cut nearly 75 teachers and raised taxes during his tenure on the Allentown School Board.

"Mike Welsh is playing the same old lazy, tired fear-mongering schtick, lying about me to distract from his own terrible record of public disservice and lack of plans for Lehigh County," Siegel said.

Welsh did not reference Republican county executive candidate Justin Simmons in his announcement. Simmons, a former state representative, announced his candidacy for Lehigh County executive last week.

Simmons pledged to support law enforcement, leave zoning to local officials and not to raise taxes.

Simmons made headlines in 2018 after The Morning Call reported he missed 9% of votes in Harrisburg. At times, Simmons posted on social media from the Capitol as if he had.

Simmons has said his mental health affected his attendance in the statehouse. He called off his campaign for U.S. representative in 2018 and opted not to seek re-election as a state representative in 2020.

Lehigh County Executive Phil Armstrong, the Democratic incumbent, is term-limited and cannot run for re-election.

The county executive oversees day-to-day operations of county government, which includes the jail, the county-owned nursing home Cedarbrook, the office of Children, Youth and Families and the Bureau of Agricultural Land Preservation.

Lehigh County property taxes are lower today (3.78 mills) than they were in 2013 (3.79 mills).