Goreham wins mayoral contest

Mike Joseph

- mjoseph@centredaily.com

STATE COLLEGE — Democrat Elizabeth Goreham easily won the State College mayor's seat Tuesday, capturing more than 60 percent of the vote against 30 percent for Republican rival Joe Wakeley. Write-ins got 8 percent.

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All three Democratic council candidates — Ron Filippelli, Tom Daubert, and Don Hahn and — were also elected. That means the seven Borough Council members as well as the mayor will continue to be all Democrats.

The four, 4-year State College Area School Board director seats up for grabs were won by Penni Fishbaine, of College Township, David Hutchinson, of State College, Jim Leous, of State College, and Gowen Roper, of Boalsburg. Brian Kaleita, of Harris Township, was the fifth candidate.

Goreham said she was surprised by her wide margin of victory.

“I was very nervous all day and now I’m just really delighted that it turned out so well,” she said.

She said she will honor the memory of the late mayor, Bill Welch, and try to build on his legacy.

“In campaigning for mayor you have to be the mayor, and the more I think about that the more I like the idea of representing the whole town.”

Goreham, 67, who will be term-limited off Borough Council at year’s end, will be the borough’s first elected female mayor when she takes office in January. Interim Mayor Felicia Lewis became the borough’s first female mayor last month.

The mayor’s office became vacant unexpectedly Sept. 4, when Welch, who was unopposed for re-election to his fifth four-year term, died at age 67 after complications from leg-artery bypass surgery.

The final vote, with all 19 borough precincts reporting, was Goreham with 2,195 votes and Wakeley with 1,050. A total of 272 write-in votes were cast.

Filippelli, elected to his second council term, said after Tuesday’s vote that he is interested in the council president position.

“I think the next four years are going to be critical for the borough,” he said. “It will require a new strategic relationship with the university to deal with the issues. I’m pleased that I’m going to have an opportunity to be part of that.”

Hahn, the top vote-getter among council candidates, said he will support Filippelli for council president.

“I think that Ron and I have both run on experience, neighborhood representation and fiscal moderation — I think those things resonate with borough voters,” Hahn said. “The key to success in the borough is not necessarily pandering to special interests but caring for the entire borough.”

Daubert, a fraternity adviser and a retired professor, said he thinks he can bring an understanding of students to council. The borough’s biggest challenge, he said, is learning how “to maintain the really quality community we have with declining resources.”

Fishbaine, a Democrat who supported the challengers in the 2007 school board election, won the most votes Tuesday, 9,408.

“I think they want someone that cares about education but also cares about spending tax dollars wisely,” Fishbaine said of State College Area voters. “I’m just excited and humbled by all the support and look forward to making a difference in State College.”