Newly Elected Bucks Commissioners Pledge Transparency, Action

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — On Nov. 5, Bucks County voters upended tradition, putting a Democratic majority on the three-member county board of commissioners for the first time in more than three decades.

Now, those commissioners-elect are promising results that the people who put them there will notice.

"I think Bucks County residents should expect to see a more active, transparent and involved board of commissioners," said Bob Harvie, chairman of the Falls Township Board of Supervisors who, along with incumbent Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia, will make up the Democratic majority on the board come January.

"Too many residents don't even know we have a county government. That means they don't know what is being done with the tax dollars they send to Doylestown and they aren't aware of the programs offered, or what services the county can provide. I hope to change that."

Unofficial results on election night showed Harvie finishing with 75,172 votes, beating out incumbent Board of Commissioners Chairman Rob Loughery, who finished fourth with 74,507. Marseglia was the day's top vote-getter with 82,650, followed by state Rep. Gene DiGirolamo who, with 77,930 votes, will be the board's lone Republican.

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The results reflected growing Democratic clout in Bucks County that has been a long time coming. Since the county's historic beginnings, Republicans have run the show in Bucks with the exception of a brief period in the mid-1980s.

"The history making election night was simply an honor," said Marseglia, who currently is the board's only Democrat. "Although people often refer to the four years the Democrats held the majority on the commissioners office in the mid-80's, it belies the decades of one-party rule that preceded 1984 and all the years of one-party rule in the row offices.

"Being given the honor and privilege to serve, Bob Harvie and I will now focus on quality of life, quality of county services, and quality of communication with municipalities and residents."

For his part, DiGirolamo — who will leave the state House where he has represented the Bensalem area since 1995 — tells Patch he has no regrets about his run for the board of commissioners, even though he'll be in the minority.

"It's not doom and gloom," he said. "It is a little disappointing to me (that Loughery didn't also win a seat) ... but that's democracy at work."

He said he has worked with Marseglia and, to a lesser extent, Harvie in the past and respects both as hard workers who want what's best for Bucks County.

"I think the three of us will get along fine," DiGirolamo said. "Not necessarily that we won't have disagreements, but I'm pretty sure that any disagreements we have will be very, very respectful, knowing the two of them."

The new board members will be sworn in on Jan. 6.

For the time being, Harvie and Marseglia have established a transition team to help them hit the ground running.

"The team will ensure we make a smooth and seamless transition so that residents of Bucks can rest assured their safety and security remains unchanged," Marseglia said. "Our transition team will then spend several months reviewing current county policies and procedures and setting new measurable and specific goals."

Harvie said the team has been consulting with Democrats in Montgomery County, where a similar power shift after decades of Republican control happened eight years ago.

The pair have appointed Tom Jennings to lead their transition team. Jennings, of Lower Makefield, is an attorney with Fisher Broyles LLP who has practiced locally for the past four decades.

"I am pleased to lead this historic effort and thank Diane and Bob for their support," Jennings said in a news release.

Along with Jennings, three other lawyers were chosen to serve on the transition team's executive committee: Michael P. Clarke, Kyong Ha Growney, and Gregory C. McCarthy.

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The board of commissioners election was the most high-profile sign of rising Democratic clout in Bucks County. But by the time election night was over, it wasn't the only one. Several Bucks County row offices that have been traditionally held by Republicans also flipped.

Among them, Democrats were elected to the posts of Register of Wills, County Treasurer, Clerk of Courts and Coroner, as well as to most of the judgeships that appeared on the ballot.

Municipal elections, including ones in Warminster and Yardley, also saw Democrats taking over what had previously been GOP-controlled bodies.

"For decades the Republican party was pretty much the only game in town when it came to elected offices," Harvie said. "That's been changing for more than a decade now as the Bucks County Democratic Committee has been building itself from the ground up by winning local races and proving that we can govern successfully.

"Last week's election was a high point so far for that growth, although I expect there will be other high points in the future."