Lebanon County Court administrator Stephanie Axarlis has released the names of 24 applicants to fill the county commissioner seat left vacant by the death on Dec. 28 of Republican commissioner William E. Ames Jr.
The list includes some familiar faces in county political and business circles, including former state Senator David Brightbill, former county commissioner Larry Stohler, current county solicitor David Warner Jr., WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital executive Michael Kuhn, and three current township supervisors.
Pennsylvania law requires the county’s Court of Common Pleas to appoint a member of the same political party to fill Ames’ spot until his term ends in January 2024. It does not set a timetable to complete the process, and the court has not announced one.
Pennsylvania law also mandates that “any written application materials submitted by any candidate are public information and shall be made available to any member of the public upon request,” except for certain personal information that cannot be disclosed.
LebTown asked Axarlis on Feb. 7 to release the materials submitted by the applicants. The court has agreed to do so, and Axarlis said late Tuesday morning that she was in the process of removing the candidates’ personal information.
Here is the full list of applicants, which can also be found at the county’s website:
| Rick Barlow | Adrian Layser |
| Michael L. Barnhart | Natalie Redcay |
| William N. Bering Jr. | John A. Schlegel |
| David J. Brightbill | Matthew Shirk |
| Sean J. Carrig | Lee F. Spencer |
| David A. DiNunzio | Jeffrey Steckbeck |
| D. John Grace Jr. | Larry Stohler |
| Robert M. Griffiths | Michael Wahmann |
| James Houser | David R. Warner Jr. |
| Thomas M. Houtz | Steven M. Wolfe |
| Daniel Kreider | Daniel Wright |
| Michael J. Kuhn | Sharon Zook |
Are you one of the 24 applicants?
LebTown has prepared its own candidate questionnaire, and would like to send it directly to all commissioner hopefuls. If you are a candidate, please email us at commissioners@lebtown.com for a direct link to the survey.
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