State’s Attorney
Harford had a heated Republican primary race for State’s Attorney. Albert Peisinger won with 6,704 votes or 38.8 percent of the vote.
The seat is open for grabs, as current State’s Attorney Joe Cassilly announced he was retiring after serving in the office for 36 years. Joe Cassilly is the oldest of 12 Cassilly brothers and sisters, which include State Senator Robert Cassilly from District 34, and State Delegate Andrew Cassilly from Subdistrict 35B.
State’s Attorney Cassilly had endorsed David Ryden, one of his deputies at the office, for the open seat. Also competing for the GOP nomination were Lisa Marts, a former assistant under Cassilly; Peisinger, a former prosecutor in the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office; and Steven Trostle, the interim state’s attorney in Cecil County.
Trostle, Marks and Peisinger all had “traded barbs” with Ryden during the campaign, reports The Baltimore Sun. Trostle accused Ryden of campaigning less than “decorously,” Peisinger accused Ryden of campaigning untruthfully, and Marks accused Ryden of behaving immaturely and lacking judgment after he accused her of mishandling a case while she worked for him and Cassilly in the Harford State’s Attorney’s Office.
The Republican State’s Attorney nominee will face Democrat Carlos Taylor, who did not have a primary opponent, in the general election.
Council President
County Council President Richard Slutzky retires this year, opening up his seat. In a two-way Republican primary between current Council Member Patrick Vincenti and former County Housing Director Shawn Kingston, Vincenti won with 13,229 votes or 79.8 percent of the vote. In the Democratic primary, Frank “Bud” Hines barely inched ahead with 6,022 votes or 50.4 percent of the vote.
MACo’s election coverage and analysis relies, as always, on unofficial results published by the State Board of Elections. Official results will follow, after a full accounting of pending ballots. Given the larger-than-usual expected number of provisional ballots (which would not be included in the unofficial vote total), readers are advised that any close unofficial results are subject to realignment in the days ahead.
