Voters in Palmerton and Bowmanstown boroughs of the lower end of Carbon County will have general election choices to make on the municipality side of balloting. There are challenges races for seats the borough councils in both towns, while there is also a contested race for mayor of Bowmanstown.

Otherwise, there are no challenged races in either Towamensing or Lower Towamensing townships, nor the balloting for positions on the Palmerton Area School District Board of Education.

Bowmanstown

The race for the four-year term as mayor of Bowmanstown is between Democrat Norman A. Engle Jr. and Republican Zachary Snyder.

There are seven people running for the four four-year terms on council. Ben C. Powell is a candidate on both the Democratic and Republican ballots while the other candidates are Democrats Robert Moyer and Ben Price and Republicans Darren Thomas, Donna L. Winter and Candace Rodrigues.

Unopposed candidates are Maria E. Smith, a Democrat running for the four-year term as tax collector, and Salvatore Lizzio, a Republican running for the six-year term as constable.

No one is running in the town for either the judge of elections position or the Democratic and Republican inspectors of elections posts. All of the poll positions are for four-year terms.

Palmerton Borough

The competition for the four four-year terms on the Palmerton Borough Council has seven candidates. They include Raberta Hans, who will appear on both the Democratic and Republican tickets, Democrats Kris W. Hoffner, Randolph Gursky and Alyson Nicole Krawchuk and Republicans Richard L. Nothstein, Cory Kepner and Michael J. Ballard.

Uncontested candidates include those running for the four-year terms as mayor and tax collector. For mayor, Don Herrmann is a candidate on both tickets, while Lisa M. Nemeth is in the same position, having won both Democratic and Republican nominations for tax collector in the primary election.

No one is running in Palmerton for the six-year term as constable.

Palmerton voters are also scheduled to elect a judge of elections in each of the three precincts - East, Middle and West - as well a Democratic and Republican inspector of elections in each of the wards. The positions are four-year terms.

There are only three candidates for these positions and all are unopposed. They include Republican Lisa Snell Kern, who is running for judge of elections in the Middle Ward, and Republican Richard M. Snell, who is seeking the Republican inspector of elections job in that district, and Democrat Lorraine Wertman, who aspires to the Democratic inspector of elections post in the West Ward.

Otherwise, no one is running in the borough for judge of elections in the East or West wards, the Democratic and Republican inspectors of elections positions in the East Ward, the Democratic inspector of elections post in the Middle Ward or the Republican inspectors of elections position in the West Ward.

Lower Towamensing

There are no choices for voters in Lower Towamensing Township to make on the municipality level this time around as the candidates for supervisor and tax collector won both Democratic and Republican nominations in the primary election and will appear on both ballots this time around.

They include Terry Kuehner, who is running for the six-year term on the board of supervisors, and Maxine Scherer, who is seeking the four-year term as tax collector.

No one is running in the township for the six-year term as constable not two auditors’ positions, for six-year and two-year terms.

Township voters are also scheduled to elect a judge of elections in both the North and South districts, and Democratic and Republican inspectors of elections in each of those districts, all for four-year terms.

There is only one candidate for those posts, that being Democrat Louise M. Koons, who is running unopposed for the judge of elections position in the South District.

Towamensing

The situation in Towamensing Township is similar to that in Lower Towamensing Township in that candidates for supervisor and tax collector are unopposed.

Democrat John Kleintop is running for the six-year term on the board of supervisors and Republican Nicole Strausberger is the lone candidate for the four-year term as tax collector.

No one is running in the township for the six-year terms as constable and auditor.

Township voters are also scheduled to elect a judge of elections in each of the three districts - North, South 1 and South 2 - as well as Democratic and Republican inspectors of elections in each of the precincts.

Unopposed candidates for those posts, which are for four-year terms, include Republican Michael Christman, who is running for judge of elections in the North District, Democrat Natalie Kleintop, who is running for judge of elections in the South 2 District, Democrat Wendy K. Hoppel and Republican Beverly K. Waibel, who are seeking their parties’ inspector of elections posts in the North District, and Republican Mary Anne Shafer, who is seeking the Republican inspector of elections position in the South 2 District.

No one is running for the judge of elections post in the South 1 District, the Democratic and Republican inspectors of elections position in the South 1 district, or the Democratic inspector of elections job in the South 2 District.

Other choices

Voters in the Palmerton area of the county will fill positions and/or make choices in several other election matters, including: retention votes of “yes” or “no” for President Judge Roger N. Nanovic and Judge Joseph J. Matika for 10-year terms on the Carbon County Court of Common Pleas; challenged races for 10-year terms as Justice of the Supreme Court and judges of the Superior and Commonwealth courts (two terms) of Pennsylvania; and challenged county races for four-year terms as treasurer and clerk of courts.

There are no contests for the county register of wills/clerk of the orphans’ court race, nor the balloting for positions on the Palmerton Area School Board, which includes the two townships and the two boroughs, as candidates who appear on the ballots for those races are all unopposed.

Jean Papay won both the Democratic and Republican nomination for register of wills in May while cross-filed in seeking the four four-year terms on the school board are Stacey A. Connell, Erin Snyder, Earl J. Paules and Danielle Paules.