Joyce Chester
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Joyce Chester is the Region 1 representative on the West Chester Area School District school board in Pennsylvania. First elected in 2013, Chester won a new term in the by-district general election on November 7, 2017.
Pennsylvania permits school board candidates to cross-file in primary elections. This means that a candidate may file to run in the primary election for both the Democratic and Republican parties. A cross-filed candidate can advance to the general election by winning one or both of the partisan primaries. This maximizes a candidate’s chances of advancing to the general as they have two ways to win in the primary round. If the candidate wins only one of the primaries, they face the winner of the other primary in the general election. Cross-filers who win both primaries may still face independent candidates in the general election.[1]
Elections
2017
Four of the nine seats on the West Chester Area School District school board were up for by-district general election on November 7, 2017. One Region 1 seat, one Region 2 seat, and two Region 3 seats were on the ballot. A partisan primary election was held on May 16, 2017. Region 1 incumbent Joyce Chester cross-filed to run for re-election in both the Democratic and Republican primaries. She ran unopposed in both the primary and general election. In Region 2, newcomer Brian Gallen cross-filed to run for the open seat. He won the Republican primary and advanced to the general election. Gallen was initially joined on the ballot by fellow newcomer Matthew Bramucci, who won the Democratic primary, but Bramucci's name did not appear on the official ballot which was released by Chester County prior to the general election.[2]
The two Region 3 seats were won by incumbent Chris McCune and newcomer Randell Spackman. Both candidates cross-filed in the election, while newcomer Chuck Linn filed as a Democrat. McCune won both parties' primaries to advance to the general election. Spackman advanced to the general election by winning the Republican primary, and Linn advanced by winning the Democratic primary.[3][4][5][6]
General results
| West Chester Area School District, Region 1 General Election, 4-year term, 2017 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic/Republican |  Joyce Chester Incumbent (unopposed) |
98.49% | 6,672 | |
| Write-in votes | 1.51% | 102 | ||
| Total Votes | 6,774 | |||
| Source: Chester County Pennsylvania, "November 7, 2017 Municipal Election Results - Cumulative Results," accessed November 8, 2017 These election results are unofficial and will be updated after official vote totals are made available. | ||||
Democratic primary results
Republican primary results
| West Chester Area School District, Region 1 Republican Primary Election, 4-year term, 2017 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Joyce Chester Incumbent (unopposed) |
98.70% | 1,061 | |
| Write-in votes | 1.3% | 14 | ||
| Total Votes | 1,075 | |||
| Source: Chester County Board of Elections, "Summary Report: Unofficial Results Primary Election, May 16, 2017," accessed May 17, 2017 These election results are unofficial and will be updated after official vote totals are made available. | ||||
Funding
| 2017 Campaign Finance Deadlines in Pennsylvania[7] | |
|---|---|
| Date | Deadline |
| May 5, 2017 | 2nd Friday Pre-Primary report due |
| June 15, 2017 | 30-Day Post-Primary report due |
| October 27, 2017 | 2nd Friday Pre-Election report due |
| December 7, 2017 | 30-Day Post-Election report due |
School board candidates in Pennsylvania were required to report their campaign finance activity. Those who spent or received more than $250 in a reporting period had to file full reports. Those below the threshold had to file forms to declare they were exempt from reporting. Candidates could have, but were not required to, form committees to handle campaign finance transactions. They were not required to have separate bank accounts for campaign purposes.[8]
The table to the left details the four campaign finance deadlines in 2017.[7]
2013
Chester ran for an at-large seat on the school board on November 5, 2013, against Maria Pimley, Sean Carpenter, Edward Coyle, Pam LaTorre, Robin Kaliner, Chris McCune, and Ricky L. Swalm.
Election results
Chester won the election on November 5, 2013.
| West Chester Area School District, At-large General Election, 4-year term, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Joyce Chester |
13.7% | 10,409 | |
| Democratic | Chris McCune |
13.7% | 10,398 | |
| Democratic | Robin Kaliner |
13.6% | 10,329 | |
| Democratic | Ricky L. Swalm |
13.4% | 10,145 | |
| Republican | Edward Coyle Incumbent | 11.6% | 8,805 | |
| Republican | Sean Carpenter Incumbent | 11.6% | 8,812 | |
| Republican | Pam LaTorre | 11.4% | 8,624 | |
| Republican | Maria Pimley Incumbent | 11% | 8,372 | |
| Total Votes | 75,894 | |||
| Source: Chester County, Pennsylvania, "Summary Report," accessed November 13, 2013 and Delaware County, Pennsylvania, "2013 Official Municipal Election Results," accessed November 13, 2013 | ||||
| West Chester Area School District, Democratic Primary Election, 4-year term, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Joyce Chester |
22.9% | 3,004 | |
| Democratic | Robin Kaliner |
22% | 2,884 | |
| Democratic | Chris McCune |
21% | 2,751 | |
| Democratic | Ricky L. Swalm |
20.3% | 2,659 | |
| Democratic | Pam LaTorre | 3.7% | 480 | |
| Democratic | Edward Coyle Incumbent | 3.5% | 459 | |
| Democratic | Maria Pimley Incumbent | 3.4% | 440 | |
| Democratic | Sean Carpenter Incumbent | 3.3% | 435 | |
| Total Votes | 13,112 | |||
| Source: Chester County, Pennsylvania, "Summary Report," accessed October 31, 2013 and Delaware County, "2013 Official Municipal Primary Results," accessed November 13, 2017 | ||||
| West Chester Area School District, Republican Primary Election, 4-year term, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Sean Carpenter Incumbent |
18.1% | 3,932 | |
| Republican | Edward Coyle Incumbent |
16.7% | 3,638 | |
| Republican | Pam LaTorre |
16.4% | 3,575 | |
| Republican | Maria Pimley Incumbent |
15.3% | 3,325 | |
| Republican | Robin Kaliner | 8.7% | 1,902 | |
| Republican | Chris McCune | 8.5% | 1,854 | |
| Republican | Joyce Chester | 8.1% | 1,758 | |
| Republican | Ricky L. Swalm | 8.3% | 1,797 | |
| Total Votes | 21,781 | |||
| Source: Chester County, Pennsylvania, "Summary Report," accessed October 31, 2013 and Delaware County, "2013 Official Municipal Primary Results," accessed November 13, 2017 | ||||
Funding
Chester reported no contributions or expenditures to the Pennsylvania Department of State in this election.[7]
Endorsements
Chester received endorsements from the Chester County Democratic Committee, Republicans for a Better Direction, and West Chester VOTE.[9]
Campaign themes
2013
As Better Direction for West Chester (WCASD) candidates, Kaliner, Chester, McCune, and Swalm listed the following views on the WCASD website:[10]
Views
|
See also
- West Chester Area School District, Pennsylvania
- West Chester Area School District elections (2017)
- West Chester Area School District elections (2013)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Pennsylvania School Boards Association, "How to Run for School Board," accessed March 30, 2017
- ↑ Chester County, "Official Candidate Report for Chester County, PA," accessed October 25, 2017
- ↑ Chester County, "Official Candidate Report," accessed May 12, 2017
- ↑ Chester County Board of Elections, "Summary Report: Unofficial Results Primary Election, May 16, 2017," accessed May 17, 2017
- ↑ Chester County Pennsylvania, "November 7, 2017 Municipal Election Results - Cumulative Results," accessed November 8, 2017
- ↑ Delaware County, Pennsylvania, "Un-Official Municipal Election 2017 Results for Thornbury Township," accessed November 10, 2017
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Pennsylvania Department of State, "2017 Election Calendar," accessed April 19, 2017 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "finance" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Campaign Finance Reporting Law," accessed January 15, 2014
- ↑ League of Women Voters of Chester County, Pennsylvania, "School Director At Large; West Chester School District Voter Information," accessed November 1, 2013
- ↑ Better Direction for West Chester, "News and Views," accessed November 1, 2013 (dead link)
| West Chester Area School District elections in 2017 | |
| Chester County, Pennsylvania | |
| Election date: | Primary: May 16, 2017 General: November 7, 2017 |
| Candidates: | Region 1: Incumbent, Joyce Chester (D/R) Region 2: Brian Gallen (R) • Matthew Bramucci (D) |
| Important information: | What was at stake? |
