Lansdale candidates
>> Voters in Lansdale will have several choices to make when they fill out, or drop off, their ballot.
A total of seven candidates are on the ballot for five council seats, each looking to serve four-year terms representing various parts of the town’s three wards.
Two seats are on the ballot in Ward 1, with incumbent Democrat Mary Fuller running alongside Democrat Rachael Bollens and Republican Konstantinos ‘Yanni’ Lambros running on the Republican side. In Ward 2, incumbent Democrat Andrew Carroll is the only candidate on the ballot, while in Ward 3 you’ll see three names: incumbent Democrat Carrie Hawkins Charlton, and fellow Democrats Mark Ladley and Mohammad Fakrul Islam, are all running for two seats up for election.
With the two Ward 3 Democrat spots the only contested primary, candidates in that race were sent the following questions.
Islam could not be reached for response.
Mark Ladley
Describe your background and qualifications for borough council.
My parents both grew up here and I have fond memories of them bringing me to Lansdale as a young child. In the late 80s and early 90s my Dad would take me for haircuts at the Lansdale Barber and we would walk down Main Street afterward. I grew up in Harleysville and Salford, and my wife and I chose to build our lives and our family here in Lansdale because we always loved it.
I work in communications and marketing, and have experience working in healthcare, tourism, and with major non-profits and corporations. It has also been my privilege to serve on the Lansdale’s Economic Development Committee since 2015, where I helped the borough earn coverage in Philadelphia Magazine and use my experience helping Main Streets with their development strategies.
I am also the vice-chair of the Civil Service Commission. I have been honored to work with the police department and other commissioners to help add to our police department.
I look forward to bringing my experience to borough council, while also drawing on my current involvement with the borough, to build on the progress we’ve experienced and to create a bright future for all residents of Lansdale.
Why are you running for this office?
I think it’s safe to say that we’ve experienced a lot of success as a community in recent years and Lansdale is a really exciting and welcoming place.
We have room to build upon that success by implementing strategies that will strengthening local businesses, while also creating a thriving Main Street. A key part of our success is also based off of our need to invest in our community policing programs.
People are choosing to live in Lansdale for the same reasons that my wife and I, and so many of our neighbors, chose to move here — affordability, a downtown with lots of promise, vibrant community gatherings, and more. We recently expanded the police department, which had previously only just met the legal ratio of the number of police officers required to serve a community of our size. As our population increases, we must make sure that our policing programs are equipped to keep our residents safe as well as continuing to be a welcoming community.
During this campaign, I have met hundreds of residents. One of the biggest issues in Ward 3 is the state of our roads. I am happy to share that I have already met with the borough’s engineer and shared that repairing roads should be a priority in the years to come. Additionally, as a father, I also running to ensure that we maintain our parks as clean and safe recreation areas for all of our residents.
If I am fortunate enough to be elected to council I will be a resource for residents across Ward 3.
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