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Obama Makes History

By Staff | Nov 12, 2008

Carney Retains Seat; Yaw, Thompson In



The son of a black father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas, Democratic senator Barack Obama, was elected the nations’ first black president last Tuesday.

A historic triumph that overcame racial barriers as old as America itself, Obama sealed his victory by defeating Republican Sen. John McCain in hard-fought battleground states of Ohio, Florida, Virginia and Iowa.

Pennsylvania,, typically a Republican-supported state, was won by Obama in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, while Republican support was “T”-shaped, with Lycoming County reporting the staunchest McCain supporters to date.

Locally, Lycoming County Solicitor E. Eugene Yaw swept the opposition aside for the 23rd District seat of retiring State Sen. Roger A. Madigan last Tuesday.

Based on the unofficial vote results, the 65-year-old attorney carried the district with 36,907 votes to Democrat Louis “Trey” Casimir’s 19,186 and Independent Michael A. Dincher’s 8,594 votes.

It was Yaw’s first political campaign as a candidate after three decades of political involvement that included a term as Lycoming County GOP chairman and working for numerous campaigns.

Democrats held onto the 10th Congressional District seat, while Republicans will keep the 5th District following Tuesday’s election.

With 91 percent of votes in, U.S. Rep. Chris Carney, D-Dimock, defeated Republican challenger Chris Hackett, capturing 57.3 percent of all votes. Vote totals were 121,717 for Carney and 90,748 for Hackett in the district comprised of all or parts of 14 counties in central and northeastern Pennsylvania.

The incumbent, who was running for reelection for the first time after defeating Don Sherwood two years ago, appeared to lose only Snyder and Union counties. In Lycoming County, Carney grabbed 50.9 percent of the vote.

Republican Glenn Thompson’s win over Dem Mark McCracken and Libertarian James Fryman was more resounding.

The Republican grabbed 13 of 14 counties in the district to receive 57.7 percent of all votes. McCracken had 39.9 percent and Fryman 2.2 percent of all votes.

In Lycoming County Thompson grabbed 65.7 percent of the vote and McCracken 32.3, according to unofficial election returns.