2 challengers win Democratic nods in Penn Hills Council race
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Challengers Frank Pecora and Jim Getsy won the two Democratic nominations for Penn Hills Council May 21 in a crowded race with seven candidates, including an incumbent.
With all precincts reporting unofficial results, Pecora had collected 19% of the votes counted followed by Getsy’s 18%.
Incumbent Mark Brodnicki finished second-to-last in the seven-way race with 9% of the vote, unofficial tallies showed. Another incumbent whose term expires at the end of the year, Councilman Gary Underwood, did not seek re-election.
No Republicans appeared on the ballot in the primary.
Pecora, who was endorsed by the Penn Hills Democratic Committee, said he was “just real happy” that Penn Hills chose him to represent them.
“I want to follow through on my platform … to reduce government expenses in Penn Hills. I also want to address the crime problem in the community by working with (District Attorney Stephen Zappala) to install cameras at key intersections to reduce drugs coming in from other communities,” he said.
He attributed his success to his familiar family name and “very hard work” on campaigning throughout the community. His father, the late state Sen. Frank Pecora served on Penn Hills Council before being elected to state office in 1978, he said. He died at age 86 in June 2017.
“I’m retired, so I had a lot of time to discuss issues with the citizens,” Pecora said. “I want to follow in my father’s footsteps.”
Getsy said he has already started to meet with Penn Hills residents to discuss how he can best serve them.
“I want to see how they see the role of the government in whatever project they’re undertaking,” Getsy said. “I’m available to talk to individuals, citizens groups, anyone. I want to take government to the people and not have them confused.”
Getsy said he was proud to win enough votes without accepting any endorsements by political groups.
Penn Hills had 21,987 registered Democrats and 6,422 registered Republicans. According to unofficial results from the Allegheny County Elections Division, turnout was 27%.
There were 81 write-in votes.
Write-in votes and absentee ballots will not be final until around 20 days, according to officials in Allegheny County Elections Division.