Westmoreland Democrats seek to refocus commissioner campaign with Thrasher out of the race

Less than 24 hours after the surprise announcement that Westmoreland Commissioner Gina Cerilli Thrasher would not seek reelection, county Democrats said Wednesday they are ready to move forward with a campaign to reclaim a majority at the courthouse.

That plan, party officials conceded, is reliant on another candidate coming forward to run on the party’s ticket with former Commissioner Ted Kopas, who announced this month he is seeking to reclaim the job he lost four years earlier.

Kopas, a Democrat from Hempfield, served a decade as commissioner before he lost to Thrasher by about 200 votes in the 2019 election to claim the minority seat on the county board. He said Thrasher’s decision to forgo a third term in office is not expected to impact his campaign.

“I am moving full steam ahead, refreshed, re-energized and ready to roll. I have always been an independent voice, and I am not running with or against anyone,” Kopas said.

Kopas and Thrasher served together for four years in a Democratic majority.

During the 2015 and 2019 races, they ran independent campaigns and staked out differing bases of support within the party. Kopas declined to say whether he had any talks with Thrasher during the early stage of this campaign but suggested he was not surprised by her decision.

“I’m sure it was a difficult decision, and I wish her and her family the best,” Kopas said.

Thrasher, who completed law school and worked part time at a Pittsburgh law firm while in office, issued a news release Tuesday night saying she is out of the 2023 campaign. She declined to comment Wednesday when asked to elaborate on her decision, which came several weeks after she returned to work from a three-month maternity leave. Thrasher gave birth to her first child in November.

According to campaign finance reports on file the courthouse, Thrasher continued to raise money for her campaign throughout 2022 and still had more than $71,000 in the account at the start of this year. She has yet to disclose whether she will support another candidate for commissioner.

“At this time, I don’t have any other comment. I may in the future,” Thrasher wrote in an email.

County Democrats anticipated Thrasher would be a candidate for one of the two party nominations for commissioner this spring.

Democratic Committee Chairwoman Michelle McFall said the party will seek out candidates who can team with Kopas.

“My phone has blown up in the last day. People are expressing interest, and we’re looking for a viable and great teammate to work with Ted Kopas to form a majority at the courthouse. That’s where we’re at,” McFall said. “I think we will see a number of people, but it’s too early and I don’t know what is going to happen.”

Potential candidates have until March 7 to circulate petitions and gather signatures from registered voters to qualify to appear on the May primary ballot.

Thrasher is the lone Democrat holding elected office in the county, and Republicans hold all of state House and Senate seats in the county.

Former Democratic Commissioner Tom Ceraso suggested Kopas, who replaced him in office in 2010, is the party’s lone realistic chance for a seat on the board of commissioners as Democrats — the dominant political party in the county two decades ago — continue to lose ground to Republicans.

The GOP accounts for more than 121,200 registered voters in the county, holding a nearly 29,000 edge in voter registration over Democrats.

“The state of the party is not good. From my perspective, I wouldn’t have foreseen two Democrats winning again,” Ceraso said.

Meanwhile, both Republican incumbent commissioners, Sean Kertes and Doug Chew, are seeking reelection and secured endorsements this month from the Westmoreland County Republican Committee. They are expected to face primary challenges from candidates they defeated four years ago.

“I am proud of the record that Commissioner Kertes and I have built over the last four years,” Chew said. “With the endorsement of the Westmoreland County Republican Party helping us win in May, I’m more than ready to put our record of results against whomever the Democrats can put forward.”

Kertes said bipartisan efforts between him and Thrasher benefited county residents.

“I will see her for the next 10 months, but I wish her well on her next endeavor in life,” Kertes said.