Steve Chronister loses bid for York County commissioner

Julie Wheeler, a former GE Healthcare general manager, came in first place on the Republican side.

• Ed Mahon
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  Ed Mahon comes to Spotlight PA from PA Post, where he covered state politics and policy, produced radio stories that were broadcast on public media stations throughout the state and on NPR’s national newscasts, and co-wrote a weekday newsletter. Prior to joining PA Post, Ed worked for six years as an investigative and political reporter for the York Daily Record, part of the USA Today Network. His reporting on failures in Pennsylvania’s system for protecting domestic abuse victims was a finalist in the national 2018 Livingston Awards for Young Journalists in the local reporting category. He was also part of a team whose coverage of the criminal justice system, including the aggressive use of civil asset forfeiture by York County prosecutors, received the 2018 G. Richard Dew Award for Journalistic Service from the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association. Before joining the York Daily Record, Ed covered K-12 education at the Centre Daily Times in State College and worked as a stringer for suburban sections of The Philadelphia Inquirer. He grew up in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.

 Ed Mahon / PA Post

Republican Steve Chronister knocked on doors on May 8, 2019, while campaigning for York County commissioner.

Republican voters rejected Steve Chronister’s bid for his old job as a York County commissioner.

Chronister received national attention last year after he called the police on five black women who he said were golfing too slowly at his family’s club. The women said he was discriminating against them.

The Republican Party of York County openly opposed Chronister’s campaign for commissioner, saying he had too much baggage. So did Republican Chris Reilly, a longtime York County commissioner.

Ed Mahon / PA Post

Four Republican candidates for York County commissioner participated in a debate on April, 29, 2019. They are, from left to right, Steve Chronister, Chris Reilly, Ron Smith and Julie Wheeler.

On Tuesday evening, with 157 out of 159 precincts reporting, Chronister was in fourth place in a five-way race on the Republican side. The Republican candidates are competing for two spots to move onto the fall.

• Julie Wheeler, a former state Senate candidate and former GE Healthcare general manager, was in first place with 15,629 votes.
• Ron Smith, the president of Dallastown Borough Council and the owner of a firearms accessory business, was in second place with 10,900.
• Reilly, the longtime county commissioner, was in third place with 10,415 votes.
• Chronister was in fourth place with 5,347 votes.

Blanda Nace was in fifth place with 1,935 votes. He dropped out of the race in May, saying he had accepted a job with York city government, but still appeared on the ballot.

Ed Mahon / PA Post

York County Commissioner Chris Reilly looks at early returns on Tuesday evening.

Chronister told the York Daily Record he conceded to Wheeler.

On the Democratic side, commissioner Doug Hoke won his party’s nomination, along with challenger Judith Higgins. Voters will elect three commissioners in the fall.

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