Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

A Washington Ave. resident, Mark Kosoglow, was appointed to Tyrone Borough Council last night.
Previously, he ran in the Republican primary for a four-year council seat but lost that bid in May of this year.
A seat became vacant on council when Sharon Dannaway resigned her council position to become the borough manager in August. She had taken a leave of absence from council at the beginning of the year to serve as “interim” manager. When she accepted council’s permanent appointment as manager she was required to resign from council.
The borough then advertised for letters of interest for the vacant seat in August. The 29-year-old Kosoglow was the only person to submit a letter to the borough.
Council members interviewed Kosoglow during last night’s meeting. He was also asked legal questions by borough solicitor Larry Clapper. After the interview process, Clapper distributed ballots to each member of council and Mayor Patricia Stoner. Each member cast their ballot for Kosoglow and Clapper read the results into the record.
After the balloting, a motion was made to appoint Kosoglow to the vacant seat. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously by council. Clapper then swore in Kosoglow and he assumed his seat on council and participated in the rest of the meeting.
Kosoglow has been a resident of Tyrone since 2000 when he moved here with his wife Julie to help Jim Kilmartin with the daily operations and ministry of Joshua House.
The Texas native graduated from a private school in Mississippi and then enrolled at Penn State University where he graduated in 1998 with a B.A. in marketing. He currently works as a fundraising consultant.
In the spring, Kosoglow said the reason he decided to run for council was a feeling “it (was) time to focus more intently on the needs of the community” that he had “come to love and call home.” He reiterated those thoughts to council during last night’s interview.
Kosoglow’s appointment allows him to serve on council through the end of the year. To serve beyond that time, Kosoglow will have to win voter approval by having his name placed on the November ballot.
First, he would have to inform the Blair County Republican Party of his interest in the position. Party officials then would have to choose Kosoglow as a candidate for a two-year term. Last night, Kosoglow said he plans to inform party leaders of his interest in running on the general election ballot.
Blair County Director of Elections Shirley Crowl said she informed the Republican and Democratic parties of the vacancy created by Dannaway’s resignation. The parties now have until Monday to submit nomination certificates to the county.
Other parties are also allowed to submit a candidate’s name to be placed on the November ballot by filing nomination papers by the Sept. 19 deadline and as in any election there is the possibility of write-in votes.
Crowl explained that due to the timing of the latest vacancy, voters would actually be casting ballots for two different two-year unexpired terms in the November election.
The first two-year term was created when J.R. Watson resigned late last year and Don Boytim was appointed to his seat. Boytim ran in the May primary and won nomination to appear on the November ballot. Brian McManigal was to have appeared on the fall ballot after winning the Republican nomination for the two-year seat. However, he withdrew his name from the ballot in June citing health reasons.
Crowl explained the ballot would ask voters to choose two candidates for the two unexpired terms. The top two vote getters will win the two seats.
If no party submits nomination certificates or papers by the Sept. 19 deadline then only Boytim’s name will appear on the ballot under the Democratic side. Crowl said in that instance, candidates would still be free to run write-in campaigns.
Voters in Tyrone will also be choosing candidates for three four-year council seats in November.

By Rick