Here’s to the winners; now it’s on to November

A look at the week that was, the issues and people who made headlines, and a few darts and laurels for those who deserve them.

LAUREL: To Mary Gay Scanlon. The attorney and former president of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board bested nine other Democratic contenders to snag the nomination for the newly minted 5th District seat in Congress. LAUREL: Also a thumb’s up to Pearl Kim, who ran unopposed on the GOP ticket. One thing is certain, Pennsylvania’s drought of not having a woman serving in Washington will end in November with the winner of the Scanlon-Kim race. Yep, Year of the Woman alright.

LAUREL: To Delco Dems. They are no doubt breathing a sigh of relief after overcoming their worst nightmare, the possibility that a Philadelphia candidate, Rich Lazer, could capture that 5th District nomination. Lazer did well in Philly, but was swamped by the Delco vote.

LAUREL: To the eight other Democrats who took part in this wild primary free-forall. Kudos to all for taking part in the civics process.

DART: To the confusion that lies ahead in this race. Remember, there will actually be two races on the ballot in November. Voters will select a candidate for the 5th District seat, but also will be charged with electing someone to fill Meehan’s 7th District seat, for all of about six weeks. If you think that’s a huge waste of money, you’re not alone. Now the state committees must select candidates for the 7th District race, which will be held according to the boundaries of the old district, not the new 5th. That means that not everyone who votes in the 7th will be able to vote in the 5th, and vice versa. Confused yet? Yeah, so are we. While it is assumed that Kim and Scanlon will be the candidates in the special election as well, there is no guarantee since the 7th includes areas not included in the 5th.

DART: To Meehan. He could have avoided all of this by resigning his seat when the scandal first broke, allowing the special election to be aligned with the Primary. Instead he said he would serve out his full term, then changed his mind, setting up this mess.

DART: To voters. Even with Democrats salivating over the new 5th District seat, and Republicans looking to pick among three candidates to tangle with incumbent Gov. Tom Wolf, voters still stayed away in droves. Across the county, Democrats managed to get 22 percent of their voters to the polls, while Republicans were a tad less, at 21 percent. In other words, nearly four out of every five eligible voters did not bother to exercise their franchise. Shameful.

LAUREL: To Mary Hopper. She waged a successful write-in campaign for the Republican nomination in the 162nd state House district. That’s the seat being vacated by Rep. Nick Miccarelli. Again, the timing here did not do voters any favors. By waiting as long as he did to announce he would not seek another term, Miccarelli deprived Republicans the chance to get another name on the primary ballot. Hopper still won the GOP nod, and will face Democrat Dave Delloso in the fall.

DART: To Miccarelli. Not only did his delay put the screws to his own party, but now the GOP bosses in

Harrisburg are turning up the heat, looking to strip him of his committee positions and forcing him to move his desk farther away from one of his accusers on the House floor. DART: Cha-Ching. Yep, it’s the sound of the season. School boards are putting the final touches on their budgets, and costs – and taxes – are going up in both Upper Darby and Garnet Valley.

LAUREL: To justice for Jesse Hartnett. The Delaware County native and Philly officer was seriously injured in an ambush attack by Edward Archer, of Yeadon, back in 2016. Archer said he carried out the attack in the name of Islam. This week he was sentenced to 48.5 to 97 years in prison. Sounds about right.

LAUREL: To the four Upper Darby police officers who rushed into a burning township home and saved a couple and their dog. Sgt. Sean Kenny and Officers Joseph DiFrancesco, William Sides and Anthony Bateman did not hesitate when they first on the scene of the blaze on Alexander Avenue. Serve and protect? These guys fill the bill. LAUREL: To retired Philly fire Deputy Fire chief and now Springfield resident Robert Marchisello. He’s put his life experience in the emergency services into a new book called ‘A Firefighter’s Journal.’ Well done.

LAUREL: To Pattiann Hamre. The Aston mom is showing us the true meaning of grit as she battles breast cancer. She has adopted a ‘superhero’ enigma as she raises funds for the cause, and also took part in last weekend’s annual Komen Race for the Cure in downtown Philly.

LAUREL: To the Class of 2018. This week we saw Neumann, West Chester, Cheyney, Widener, Villanova and Delaware County Community College send off their grads. A college degree, even with its everrising cost that often leads students with heavy debt, is still a prerequisite for many.

LAUREL: To the spectacular new gardens available to the public at Stoneleigh, out on the Main Line. They provide an enchanting spot for a walk to commune with nature.

DART: To the Lower Merion School District, which is still attempting to utilize eminent domain to acquire the spectacular property for a new school. And ruin this gorgeous natural display? We hope not.

DART: To Mother Nature. Maybe one of these days the clouds and rain will disappear and we actually will get the chance to enjoy this breathtaking display of natural beauty.

LAUREL: To Gabe Kapler and the Phillies. Raise your hand if you’re pleasantly surprised by the Phils’ earlyseason success? Yeah, we are, too. After the first month of the season, the Phils are comfortably above the .500 mark and chasing the lead in the National League East race. They’ve won seven of their last eight going into last night’s game in St. Louis.

DART: To the Sixers. Yeah, we’re getting greedy now. We know expectations were low. But weren’t the Sixers favored vs. the Celtics? They lost in five. But hey, they do have the 10th pick in the NBA Draft, courtesy of that deal with the Lakers.

LAUREL: To the Eagles. We’re thinking of making this a weekly contribution. Yep, we’re still Super Bowl champions!