Many factors cited in defeat of Chesco incumbents

The upset of the only two Chester County officials who faced opposition in Tuesday's primary was blamed yesterday on a range of factors.

Joseph "Skip" Brion, the county's GOP chairman, said he believed the fact that Treasurer Alan J. Randzin and Clerk of Courts Teena A. Peters were seeking third terms contributed to their defeats.

He suggested that for the most part, the Republican committee supported a two-term limit, viewing the row offices "as an opportunity to serve the public, not a longstanding job."

He added that the defeats should not be interpreted as "a litmus test on social issues."

Randzin, 58, of Downingtown, was defeated by Ann Duke, 50, a former West Chester councilwoman.

"People are looking for new leadership," said Duke, adding that she was surprised only by her wide margin of victory.

She said she had the support of Chester County ACTION, a conservative pro-life group, but did not see any ideological change in county Republicans.

"Philosophically, I don't think there's anything wrong with this party. We got bludgeoned a little in the last election, and we need to continue to hit our strengths," Duke said.

Randzin, who declined to comment yesterday, bucked the party in February 2007 when he failed to get the GOP endorsement for commissioner and ran for a time without it before withdrawing.

Peters, 61, of Phoenixville, who lost to Frank McElwaine, 73, a retired corporate budget director from West Chester, said she believed low turnout and an anti-incumbent sentiment had played key roles in the outcome.

Only 15 percent of the county's 275,675 eligible voters went to the polls, but Republicans outnumbered Democrats. GOP ballots totaled 26,752, and Democrats tallied 15,051, according to the county's Voter Services.

Peters said some voters had complimented her on the job she had done in her office, which handles records, bail, and fines for all criminal cases, but also indicated an interest in change.

"It's a shame that many voters don't understand how the office operates and why continuity is important," she said, adding that she had not yet considered a write-in campaign.

McElwaine did not return a phone call seeking comment.

In November, McElwaine will face Democrat Mike McGann, 44, a Web developer and editor from Pocopson, and Duke will square off against Democrat Barbara "Kipp" Stone, 66, a retired bank vice president.

In noteworthy municipal races, two West Chester Democrats ended up 23 votes apart. Unofficial results showed Councilwoman Carolyn Comitta ahead of Bill Scott, a former council president, 515-492. No Republican was on the ballot.

In Coatesville, voters appeared to heed the words of Chester County District Attorney Joseph W. Carroll, who blamed the city's spiraling crime rate on a lack of government support for law enforcement. Incumbents Patsy Ray and Kurt Schenk were both defeated.

Looking ahead to the general election, Brion said Republicans would stress that their strong leadership "is responsible for the AAA bond rating, low taxes, and open-space program . . . things that make Chester County a great place to live."

Michele Vaughn, the county Democratic chairwoman, said she believed groups such as Chester County ACTION, an acronym for Americans for Christian Traditions in Our Nation, show county Republicans leaning further to the right. She said that trend should help Democrats continue to erode the GOP's voter-registration edge, a 2-1 ratio for decades.

The latest numbers showed 149,842 registered Republicans and 125,728 Democrats, according to the county's Voter Services.