EASTON, Pa. — Northampton County District Attorney Terry Houck will slip into the November election despite losing the Democratic primary last week.
Lehigh Valley election officials have begun reporting unofficial results of some tight write-in campaign races, and Northampton County officials released results of write-in votes for the district attorney race Monday evening.
That tally showed Houck with a commanding 1,468 votes for the Republican nomination, good for more than 69% of write-in votes.
- Northampton County officials are wrapping up their canvass of write-in and provisional votes Tuesday
- Unofficial results in Northampton County show District Attorney Terry Houck won the Republican nomination as a write-in candidate despite losing the Democratic primary
- In Lehigh County, Sheriff Joe Hannah and district attorney candidate Gavin Holihan won both the Democratic and Republican primaries in their races
Houck declared victory in his write-in campaign for the Republican nomination the night of the primary. He had hoped to secure both parties' nominations that night, but challenger Stephen Baratta handed him a decisive loss in the Democratic primary.
"I'm overwhelmed at the number of write-ins that we got," Houck said Tuesday morning. "To get over 1,400 votes is very gratifying."
'A challenging five years'
Securing the Republican nomination will create a rematch in what has been one of the most contentious local primaries in recent memory.
Baratta surprised many observers by retiring as a county judge specifically to campaign against Houck. The district attorney office, he said, was in disarray, and he accused Houck of mismanaging it and unethical conduct.
Houck in turn branded Baratta as a liar who would say and do anything to get elected.
Houck, who is seeking a second term, got multiple endorsements from police unions, but was not welcomed onto the Republican ballot by leaders of the Northampton County Republican Committee.
"I haven't given it one bit of thought, nor do I care."Northampton County District Attorney Terry Houck, regarding a potential third candidate
The GOP had failed to nominate a candidate for the race, but committee Chairman Glenn Geissinger said it hopes to introduce a write-in candidate of its own for the general election.
No candidate has stepped forward as of yet.
"I haven't given it one bit of thought, nor do I care," Houck said of a potential third candidate.
Lehigh County results
Meanwhile, Lehigh County completed its tally of unofficial provisional and write-in ballots Monday afternoon, Chief Clerk Tim Benyo said.
Those numbers confirmed Gavin Holihan secured both the Republican and Democratic nominations for district attorney.
Holihan, a Republican, received multiple endorsements from prominent Democrats leading up to the election. He's also been endorsed by retiring incumbent Jim Martin, who hired Holihan this year as his first assistant district attorney.
Sheriff Joe Hannah followed a similar path, winning his uncontested Republican primary and a write-in campaign for the Democratic nod. Like Holihan, he was running uncontested in both races.
Other write-in wins in Lehigh County include Eric DeLabar winning a spot on the November ballot for Catasauqua School Board as a Democrat. Voters are tasked with selecting four candidates in that race, but even with DeLabar's emergence there are only three candidates in that race.
Northampton County spokeswoman Brittney Waylen said the county expects to complete its count of mail-in and provisional ballots today.
Several results still are up in the air — including a write-in race for the Bethlehem treasurer and the final spot on the Democratic slate for Saucon Valley School Board.
