Kichline won’t seek third term as commissioner
WEST CHESTER » With the decision by Commissioner Michelle Kichline to not seek reelection to the seat she has held for eight years, two men — one a veteran of previous campaigns and one a neophyte — have announced that they will seek the Republican Party nomination for the fouryear post.
Former state Rep. Eric Roe and local schoolteacher David Sommers have announced they would each run for the office that will be on the ballot in November 2023. Each party can nominate two candidates for the three-member county governing board in the May primary.
Kichline confirmed in an email last week that she would not seek a third term.
“It has been my honor to serve Chester County as a commissioner since 2014,” she wrote. “I am a firm believer in limited terms for elected officials. When I ran the first time I made it clear to my party leadership that I would only serve two terms. It will be bittersweet to be leaving but I am proud of the many initiatives that were enacted in my tenure.”
In her years on the board, of which she served as chairwoman multiple times, Kichline was known to be an advocate for economic development in the county and a zealous supporter of transportation initiatives here, including the redevelopment of the Paoli Train Station and the construction of a new Coatesville train depot.
She also was a fierce advocate for treatment initiatives and intervention techniques for those caught up in the opioid epidemic and helped engineer the county’s involvement in a lawsuit against the pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors involved in the proliferation of excessively addictive drugs.
“All of this was possible because of the top-notch employees and administrators working in county government,” she said. “Thank you to all the citizens who entrusted me to represent them and serve our community. Chester County is truly a special place, in large part, because of our terrific residents.”
Kichline was appointed commissioner by the county Board of Judges in 2014 to fill the vacancy created when former Commissioner Ryan Costello, also a Republican, was elected to Congress. She had previously served on the zoning hearing board in Tredyffrin, where she lives with her husband, Michael, and then as a member and chairwoman of Tredyffrin’s Board of Supervisors.
Although she did not specify what her plans would be after leaving office at the end of 2023, Kichline is an attorney specializing in municipal law and has made contacts across government agencies in her years in office.
In their announcements, Roe and Sommers laid out what their campaigns would look like and what positions they might take if elected, with both emphasizing their commitment to preserving the “quality of life” in the county.
Although there will be at least four candidates on the November 2023 ballot for commissioner, the top two candidates and the third-place finisher are elected. In 2019, the county reversed its centuriesold domination by the GOP at the county level and elected two Democrats — Josh Maxwell and Marian Moskowitz — to lead the county. Neither has publicly said what their intentions are for 2023.
County Democrats currently outnumber Republicans in voter registration, 160,317 to 152,500.
“I love this county, and I want to see its residents flourish,” Roe said in his press release. “Chester County is a great place to live, work, raise a family, and retire, but it takes hard work to keep it that way. Our quality of life must be fought for and protected, and that’s just what I will do in county government.”
In his press release, Sommers said would “work to preserve the historic character and natural beauty of Chester County for all who live and work here currently and the next generation.” On his campaign website, promised support for the county parks and trails system “for all who live and work here currently and the next gen
eration.”
Roe, 35, of West Bradford, served in the state House of Representatives for one term, then lost a re-election bid to the current representative of the 158th Legislative District, Christina Sappey. While in office, he said, he cosponsored and passed laws to protect victims of domestic violence, safeguard preserved land from eminent domain, and introduced legislation to prohibit partisan gerrymandering in the legislative redistricting process.
On the type of campaign he will run, Roe said he intends to keep it positive. “After that politically charged midterm election, the last thing our community needs is more mudslinging and ugliness. Instead, I’ll keep it about two things: what I’ve done for us lately, and what I’ll do as a county Commissioner.”
He also worked as an administrative analyst in Kichline’s office for several years.
Sommers, 48, of West Goshen is a secondary school teacher in social studies at Bishop Shanahan High School in Downingtown. He said he would offer a “common sense” approach to local government based on his real-life experiences, and would “advocate for fiscally sound, conservative, limited government policies.
He said he would “reject harmful interference, mandates, restrictions, and closures for schools, businesses, and places of worship ” … and would reject “wasteful spending and promote conservative fiscal policies” as well as make sure that elections in the county “are handled and processed legally and fairly.” Lastly, he said that “career politicians have diminished county government.”
County commissioners are paid $86,389 a year.