Bernie O’Hare has a letter that Northampton County Exec. John Stoffa wrote to Party Chair Joe Long urging him to step down. From the letter:

Dear Joe;

The time has come for you to resign your post as Chairman of the Northampton County Democratic Party.

Democrats of Northampton County are witnessing:  read more »

• a steady decline in the quality of candidates

• a failure to maintain party unity as seen in crumbling local committees, reduced emphasis on consensus-building activities, declining attendance at the annual County Party picnic, and a lack of significant fundraising events

• a lack of a working volunteer recruitment/development program

The big winners in Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett’s $200,000 settlement with Lehigh Valley College last week were the state and the school’s parent company, Career Education Corp.  read more »

It’s an impressive amount for any Lehigh Valley pol, but it barely gets him in the door for a 2010 bid.

Lehigh County Executive Don Cunningham raised nearly a half-million dollars last year as he considers running for governor, but he still trails other potential Democratic candidates.

Cunningham started 2007 with about $800 in his campaign account and raised about $489,000, according to his year-end report filed Wednesday in Harrisburg. He spent about $66,000, leaving a balance of about $423,000.

Electors already challenging electronic voting machines in Pennsylvania asked Commonwealth Court on Friday to stop Northampton and two other counties from buying a new electronic voting system to replace one decertified last year.

Northampton County already has placed a $1.7 million order for 300 refurbished AVC Advantage machines from Sequoia Voting Systems for use in the April 22 primary. The county has set aside $2 million for the purchase and will be reimbursed up to just over $2 million by the state.  read more »

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Voting machines approved in Northampton County

A new voting system will greet Northampton County voters when they cast ballots in the April 22 primary.

County Council on Thursday accepted a recommendation made earlier in the day by the county Election Commission to purchase 300 electronic voting machines from Sequoia Voting Systems. The company provides the same machines in Montgomery County.  read more »

A very sad accident. Ramos served his community for many years, both locally in the Lehigh Valley and statewide, notably as a member of the Pennsylvania State Board of Education.

Luis A. Ramos, a longtime fixture among business and civic groups and a leader of the Lehigh Valley’s Latino community, died last night when his car hit a tree off Interstate 80 in Luzerne County, officials said.

Ramos, 57, spent more than 30 years working for PPL Corp. and helped draft a plan to boost academic performance in the Allentown School District, among other accomplishments.  read more »

Allentown rookie police officer Brett Guth lost his job Wednesday for his role in the collision of two police cars that left a little boy dead.

City Council voted 3-2 to fire Guth, who state police say caused the May accident when he ran a red light on the way to an emergency call. Daviay Legrand, 4, died when he was hit by one of the cars as it spun onto the sidewalk.

Police Chief Roger MacLean, with the support of Mayor Ed Pawlowski, had recommended firing Guth.

Councilmen Julio Guridy, Tony Phillips and Martin Velazquez III voted to fire the officer. Councilmen Michael D’Amore and Louis Hershman voted against it and tried to change the termination to a 30-day suspension.  read more »

The souls of the city find sanctuary in Allentown’s 140 houses of worship, but Mayor Ed Pawlowski and a broad coalition of clergy say the community of faith can offer something else: a united front against gangs, guns, drugs, despair and untold other problems afflicting the urban core.

Faith leaders have always been involved in such efforts, but in sometimes fragmentary fashion unaided by city government, Pawlowski said at a news conference Wednesday in announcing the formation of Allentown’s Office of Faith-Based Initiatives.  read more »