A first-term Northumberland County Republican state representative won’t face an opponent in the April 23 primary election after all.
Rep. Michael Stender Jr., who lives in Sunbury, would have faced Thomas Webb Jr., of Rockefeller Twp.
He won’t because two Republican voters successfully challenged Webb’s nominating petitions.
Voters sign nominating petitions to get candidates on the ballot, but the petitions must follow state rules.
The Republican petition challengers said the people who circulated Webb’s petitions weren’t registered to vote at the address they wrote on the petitions.
That meant Webb didn’t have the required 300 signatures.
At a Commonwealth Court hearing last week, Webb conceded he lacked enough signatures. A judge then ordered him removed from the ballot.
That leaves Stender as the only contender for the 108th House District seat because no Democratic candidate filed.
Stender won the seat in a special election last May. He replaced Lynda Schlegel Culver, who won a special election to the 27th Senate District seat that longtime Sen. John Gordner gave up.
Stender is seeking his first full two-year term. The salary this year for representatives is $106,422.33 with an unknown raise due Dec. 1.
The 108th District includes all of Montour County and most of Northumberland County.
