Lackawanna County’s Democratic Party chairman re-submitted Friday the same three names who the party recommended last week to replace former Commissioner Matt McGloin.
Party chairman Chris Patrick first submitted the names to the county common pleas court last Friday, but President Judge Trish Corbett ordered a re-submission Thursday. The court judges will pick one of the three.
“It’s in the hands of the judges,” Patrick said Friday. “I fulfilled my obligations in that court order.”
The county Democratic Party executive committee voted overwhelmingly Feb. 27 to recommend the judges choose from among former county planning and economic development director Brenda Sacco, Olyphant Council President James Baldan and Scranton School Director Bob Casey.
Court administrator Frank Castellano said the judges will schedule interviews with each candidate. He did not know when the interviews will happen.
“The president judge will establish that in consultation with the other judges,” Castellano said.
McGloin announced his resignation Feb. 21, effective Feb. 24. The county home rule charter says the political party of a commissioner who leaves office has five days to recommend three potential replacements.
Believing the clock to a decide started Feb. 24, the county Democrats met and chose the three. Patrick said he acted on the advice of county solicitor Don Frederickson who agreed the resignation was effective Feb. 24.
Hours before the Democrats met to choose the three names, Frederickson wrote a letter to the court saying the resignation would only take effect once the remaining commissioners accepted it.
They did that Wednesday, though the court said it considered McGloin’s resignation effective Thursday. There is no deadline for the court to decide on a new commissioner.
