All registered voters in the 139th PA Legislative District can participate in the primary election on Tuesday, April 23, due to the special election to determine who will succeed State Rep. Joseph Adams, who resigned in early February.

Typically, only the members of the two major parties—Republican and Democratic—go to the polls in the spring to nominate their respective candidates for the November general election. But the special election to serve out the remainder of Adams’ term (which lasts through November 30), means all voters, including those registered as Independent or in any other party, can also cast a vote for that office during the primary election polling.

“We want to get the word out to those folks, who are not used to going to the polls this time of year, that there will be ballots for them at each precinct in the 139th District this spring,” said Commissioner Jocelyn Cramer, who chairs the Wayne County Board of Elections.

The 139th District consists of Cherry Ridge, Dreher, Lake, Lehigh, Palmyra, Paupack, Salem, South Canaan and Sterling Townships, as well as Hawley Borough in Wayne County. It also includes the northern half of Pike County. 

Any registered non-Democratic or Republican voter can appear at their normal polling locations on April 23, and they will be given a ballot containing only the special election race to cast their vote.

For the Republicans and Democrats, the special election will be one of several important races on the ballot. Along with party nominations for President, voters will choose their respective nominees for U.S. Senator and Representative to Congress, State Treasurer, Auditor General and Attorney General and Representative to the PA General Assembly in the 111th and the 139th Districts.

The two individuals chosen by their parties to fill the unexpired term in the 139th District—Democrat Robin Schooley Skibber and Republican Jeff Olsommer—also appear on their respective ballots vying for the full two-year term that begins in January 2025. Each had filed the appropriate paperwork to appear on the primary ballot, after Adams announced his intention not to run for another term.

“So Democratic and Republican voters in the 139th District will actually see that race on their ballots twice: once for the special election with both names, and again for the primary election with just the one name,” Cramer said. “But all registered voters in the 139th can participate in the April primary, and every voter has the choice to vote in person or by mail.”

To find your polling location, request a mail-in ballot, get more information and view a sample ballot (once available), visit waynecountypa.gov/197/Bureau-Of-Elections, click on the Bureau of Elections button at www.WayneCountyPA.gov, or call 570/253-5970 ext. 4003.

Contributed by the Wayne County Board of Elections.