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Dodson wins twice in Hollidaysburg election

Councilman takes races for mayor, Ward 2 seat

Tuesday was a tale of two victories for Joseph Dodson, who secured enough votes to win two Republican primary races in Hollidaysburg Borough, according to unofficial Blair County elections results.

Those wins secured him the Republican nomination for this year’s mayoral race in the general election, as well as for re-election to his Ward 2 Borough Council seat.

With 402 votes, Dodson — Ward 2’s current councilman — won about 49 percent of votes cast in the mayoral race, allowing him to beat out two of his fellow council members, according to unofficial results.

Also seeking the mayorship were Ward 7 Councilman Jeffrey Ketner and Ward 3 Councilman Patrick Plummer. With 334 votes, Ketner won about 40 percent of votes cast, and, with 82 votes, Plummer won about 10 percent of votes, unofficial results show.

“The other two guys who ran against me, they ran a good race,” Dodson said, before revealing his edge: “I guess experience.”

Dodson previously served as the borough’s mayor for eight years in addition to his time as a councilman. During that time, Dodson said he has remained available to residents. He said he plans to continue to vote in line with his constituents’ opinions and beliefs.

“When people call, they want someone at the other end of the phone,” he said. “The constituents are the ones that put me here, and I follow their lead.”

On Tuesday night, Ketner, the borough’s former police chief, said he was content with the primary election’s outcome, and he plans to continue his work as Ward 7’s council representative.

“It was a good campaign,” he said. “What are you going to do?”

Democratic mayoral candidate David Bailey, a National Guard veteran and Altoona Community Band’s assistant director, ran unopposed in Tuesday’s primary.

Dodson and Bailey likely will compete in November’s general election.

“If I win the general election, there’s a lot of different things I want to get accomplished,” Dodson said, listing securing grants and obtaining state-of-the-art police equipment as his goals.

In addition to the mayoral race, Dodson and Plummer faced off in the Ward 2 Republican primary.

Within Hollidaysburg, council members must live in the wards in which they are elected. But that was complicated when ward boundaries were redrawn in October. The newly approved ward map moved Plummer from Ward 3 into Ward 2, which is now represented by Dodson.

Dodson was able to win 83 votes — about 65 percent of votes cast — in Ward 2, defeating Plummer, who received 45 votes or about 35 percent of votes cast, according to unofficial results.

However, because Plummer’s Ward 3 term is not over until 2019, he will be able to hold onto that position despite living in Ward 2.

Currently, no Democrats are seeking election to the Ward 2 seat.

Ward 4 Councilman Sean Burke, a Republican, also ran unopposed Tuesday in his bid for re-election. Also unopposed was newcomer Joyce A. Lowe, a Republican who is seeking council’s Ward 6 seat.

Ward 6 is now represented by Councilwoman Steph­anie Wertz, but she could not seek re-election because her home was moved from Ward 6 to Ward 3 during October’s redistricting.

Plummer did not return a phone message left for him Tuesday night.

Mirror Staff Writer Sean Sauro is at 946-7535.

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