It looks like Lancaster County will have at least five new mayors in January, and possibly as many as eight.
New Republican faces advanced easily in mayoral contests in Tuesday's primary in Elizabethtown, Lititz, Mountville, Quarryville and Strasburg.
Four of them will run unopposed this fall.
Incumbent mayors will face challenges this fall in Columbia, Ephrata and Mountville. And in Manheim, an incumbent is not seeking reelection.
Perhaps the most interesting borough contest in the primary was a five-way battle for three council seats in Strasburg, where an incumbent lost her seat by five votes.
But first, back to the mayoral races.
C. Chuck Mummert, an Elizabethtown Borough councilman for the past four years, handily won the vacant mayor's seat over political newcomer Donald Keller.
Mummert, a salesman for a home-repair business for elderly and low-income people, will run unopposed in the November election.
He hopes to succeed retiring mayor Bob Brain.
The unofficial results in the Elizabethtown mayoral race were:
C. Chuck Mummert 460
Donald Keller 121
In Lititz Borough, Republican candidate Greg Nies abruptly dropped out of the race earlier this month, citing personal reasons.
That left his opponent, Ronald G. Oettel Jr., to claim nearly 90 percent of the vote. He will run unopposed in November for the post being vacated by Russell Pettyjohn, who has been mayor of Lititz for 16 years.
The unofficial results in the Lititz mayoral race were:
Ronald G. Oettel Jr. 444
Greg Nies 53
In Mountville Borough, Philip S. Kresge is gearing up for a November mayoral contest against Democratic incumbent Connie Guy, who was unopposed in her party's primary.
Kresge, a teacher, musician and borough councilman, bested Sean T. Wissler in the contest to represent the GOP. The unofficial results in the Mountville mayoral race were:
Philip S. Kresge 88
Sean T. Wisler 38
New Holland Borough's incumbent mayor, Wilbur G. Horning, easily held onto his seat against a challenge by Jeff Singleton.
Horning works at Susquehanna Bank's Blue Ball branch and has been mayor of New Holland for the past seven years. He is unopposed in the fall.
The unofficial results in the New Holland mayoral race were:
Wilbur G. Horning 310
Jeff Singleton 87
Joy Kemper snagged the party's mayoral nomination in Quarryville Borough, where she and councilman Durwin W. Parks contended for a seat being vacated by outgoing Mayor Jerry McCarrell.
Kemper, a former councilwoman, is a customer service representative for PPL. She said she aims to keep spending under control and "keep things going smoothly" in Quarryville.
The unofficial results in the Quarryville mayoral race were:
Joy Kemper 127
Durwin W. Parks 66
Henry D. Miller is poised to take over from Bruce Ryder, who has been mayor of Strasburg Borough for the past 15 years and did not run again this year.
Miller, a small commercial job printer who publishes the Strasburg Weekly News, also is treasurer of Strasburg Rail Road. He had served as mayor before Ryder took office.
Miller bested Patty Hunt, a retired Sight & Sound actress who also has worked for the Council of Churches. He is unopposed in the fall election.
The unofficial results in the Strasburg mayoral race were:
Henry D. Miller 219
Patty Hunt 96
Republican candidates also competed in council races in three county boroughs Tuesday.
The Strasburg Borough Council race featured five candidates, including two incumbents, competing for three Republican nominations.
Incumbent Cindy Baker, owner of Merenda Zug Expresso Bar in Strasburg, garnered the most votes.
Randy Hock, owner of Budget Blinds, a custom window treatment franchise in Lancaster, and Michael A. Chiodo, a teacher in the Lampeter-Strasburg School District, also won.
Chiodo said today he has never gotten involved before in the town's politics and doesn't have an agenda.
He sees the council position "strictly as a service to the community."
Incumbent Penny D'Alessandro, a retired elementary school teacher, fell five votes short of finding her name on the ballot in the fall.
The unofficial borough council results were:
Cindy Baker 202
Randy Hock 181
Michael A. Chiodo 162
Penny D'Alessandro 157
Richard Shindle 122
In the Akron Borough Council race, three incumbent council members — Terry Reber, Perry Lorah and Thomas Murray — won Republican nominations. Winning the GOP nomination for a fourth seat was Justin Gehman. A fifth candidate, Joanne Gestewitz, fell short by 11 votes.
The unofficial borough council results were:
Terry W. Reber 147
Perry K. Lorah 146
Justin Gehman 128
Thomas J. Murray 119
Joanne Gestewitz 108
Reber serves as council's finance committee chairperson and is administrator for the East Cocalico Township Authority.
Reber said he sees the main goal of his job on council as making sure the borough's money is spent wisely and to "get the most bang for our buck."
Despite the economic downturn, Reber said the borough has not been severely affected because of the professional staff running the office, giving council the ability to keep taxes low.
The Mount Joy Borough Council's East Ward race consisted of two incumbents vying for one Republican nomination for a four-year seat.
Robert Golicher, a retired businessman, emerged as the winner by three votes, beating Christopher Metzler, a counselor at Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology.
But Metzler could still have a chance to stay on the board. At the end of the year, borough council will have to appoint someone to fill a two-year position on council, according to a county elections official.
The unofficial borough council East Ward results were:
Robert Golicher 36
Christopher Metzler 33
Republicans also competed in constable races in three county boroughs Tuesday.
In the Manheim Borough constable 1st Ward race, the incumbent and current mayor was defeated in his bid for the Republican nomination.
Christopher M. Swartz defeated Randall S. Kreiser, who has served as a constable in Manheim for nearly two decades. Kreiser has also been serving as the mayor of Manheim after replacing Tom Fee in 2007. Swartz is unopposed in the fall.
The unofficial constable results were:
Christopher M. Swartz 113
Randall S. Kreiser 80
In Elizabethtown Borough, Beth A. Voss narrowly defeated Clell E. Mitchell III for the GOP nomination for constable in the 3rd Ward. She is unopposed in the fall.
The unofficial results were:
Beth A. Voss 131
Clell E. Mitchell III 120
The Denver Borough constable race was a lopsided victory for the incumbent, who is unopposed in the fall.
Adam Webber, who currently serves as the borough's constable, beat John Manley by a 6-to-1 margin for the Republican nomination.
The unofficial results were:
Adam Webber 87
John Manley 14
Staff writer Ryan Robinson can be reached at rrobinson@LNPnews.com or 481-6032.