Three Commissioners Unopposed In Re-Election Bids; No Contested Races For School Board

SNOW HILL – Following Tuesday’s filing deadline, candidates are now official in a variety of Worcester County political races.

At least three of the existing Worcester County Commissioners are expected to retain their seats, as commissioners Diana Purnell, Jim Bunting and Joe Mitrecic have each filed for reelection and face no challengers.

In District 1, Republican Commissioner Merrill Lockfaw, first elected in 2010, will face Democratic challenger Joshua Nordstrom in November general election.

In District 3, June’s primary election will determine whether incumbent Commissioner Bud Church, first elected in 2002, or challenger Gary Millhoff will square off against Democrat Zack Tyndall, a Berlin councilman, in the general election this fall.

In District 4, Commissioner Ted Elder will face former commissioner Virgil Shockley. Shockley, who served from 1998 to 2014, defeated Elder in elections in 2006 and 2010 but was unseated by the Republican in 2014.

In District 5, encompassing much of Ocean Pines, Republican incumbent Commissioner Chip Bertino, currently finishing his first term, will seek to retain his seat against a bid by Democrat Judy Butler in November.

The state’s attorney race in Worcester County will likely be settled at the primary level, as both candidates are Republicans. Bill McDermott, the interim state’s attorney who took over following Beau Oglesby’s appointment as a Worcester County Circuit Court judge, will face Kris Heiser, a Wicomico County prosecutor.

Inside the courthouse, Republican incumbent Susan Braniecki faces no opposition in her re-election bid.

When Register of Wills Charlotte Cathell announced in September that she would not run again, her longtime administrator, Terri Westcott, a Republican, was the first to throw her name in the hat. In the last two weeks, Republicans Aaron Redden and Steven Sisk and Democrat Nicole Caudell have also filed for the position.

Judge of Orphans Court incumbents Linda Hess and Mike Diffendal have filed for another term. Republicans Cheryl Jacobs and John P. Quinn are also seeking seats.

Republicans will choose the replacement for Sheriff Reggie Mason in the primary election. Four Republicans, Scott Bernal, Matt Crisafulli, Mike McDermott and George Truitt, have filed for the position. While Pocomoke residents Crisafulli and McDermott currently work for the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, Truitt is an ABCO security officer and Bernal is a retired Ocean City Police Department officer.

None of the available board of education seats feature contested elections this year. In District 1, which has long been represented by Doug Dryden, Bill Buchanan was the only candidate to file.

In District 4, incumbent Bill Gordy, currently president of the board, filed for reelection.

In District 6, incumbent Eric Cropper filed for reelection.

In District 7, which has long been represented by Bob Rothermel, Todd Ferrante, president of the Worcester County Education Foundation, was the only candidate to file for election.

About The Author: Charlene Sharpe

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Charlene Sharpe has been with The Dispatch since 2014. A graduate of Stephen Decatur High School and the University of Richmond, she spent seven years with the Delmarva Media Group before joining the team at The Dispatch.