Of three magisterial races in Carbon County, there was competition in just one.

That was in the Palmerton area which covers Palmerton, Towamensing Township, Parryville, Franklin Township, Weissport, and other municipalities.Four individuals cross-filed and sought the position being created by the retirement of Bruce Appleton of Parryville.Emerging victorious on both sides of the ballot by a comfortable margin was Bill Kissner, a detective/sergeant supervising the special operations/vice unit of the Bethlehem Police Department.Kissner won the GOP side of the ticket by more than a 4:1 margin over his closest opponent. On the Democratic side, his margin of victory was 2:1 over the second place candidate.Opponents were Randolph Smith, Angela Stehle, and Brad Doll.Unopposed in their quests for reelection were:• Casimir Kosciolek of Lake Hauto, who serves the Panther Valley area.• Edward Lewis of Jim Thorpe, who serves Jim Thorpe, Lehighton, Kidder Township, and Penn Forest Township.In the election for Appleton's vacant post, votes were received as follows:RepublicanKissner - 995.Smith - 286.Doll - 180.Stehle - 140.DemocratKissner - 822.Smith - 424.Stehle - 252.Doll - 245.Kissner was born and raised in Palmerton. He is a 1984 graduate of Palmerton Area High School, and a 1988 graduate of Lehigh Carbon Community College, and a 1990 graduate of Kutztown University, earning a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice. He also graduated from the Allentown Police Academy in 1991.Smith, of Palmerton, is presently chief of police in that community. He has been a member of the Palmerton Police Department for 30 years.Doll, of Palmerton, is the town's mayor.Stehle, of Franklin Township, is employed as an attorney.