MIFFLINTOWN - State Rep. Adam Harris defeated two challengers in the Republican primary for the 82nd Legislative District, according to unofficial election results Tuesday.
"I'm very excited," Harris said at the Juniata County Courthouse. "We ran a positive campaign. People want to hear the issues, not mudslinging."
Barring any successful write-in campaigns, the Juniata County native is set to run unopposed in the fall general election. No Democratic candidates sought the 82nd District seat in the primary election.
Article Photos
Sentinel photo by BUFFIE BOYER
Rep. Adam Harris, R-Mifflintown, second from right, chats with his family members, from left, Jared and Kristen Graybill, Melissa Leister and Jenise Wilfong, Tuesday night at the Juniata County Courthouse after winning the Republican nomination for the 82nd District. He will run unopposed in the fall general election.
Harris, a state representative since 2003, received a total of 3,436 votes.
Challenger Jim Felmlee, an active local government official from Lewistown, won the majority of Mifflin County votes and came in second place with a total of 2,377 votes. Juniata County businessman James Knepp received a total of 1,026 votes, putting him in third place.
Harris overwhelmingly carried Juniata County with 1,765 votes, or 61 percent, while Felmlee won the most votes in Mifflin County with 1,466. Knepp and Felmlee tied for second place in Juniata County with 547 votes each, according to the unofficial results. Harris garnered 810 votes in Mifflin County, and Knepp received 229 votes.
In Snyder County, 861 voters, or 58 percent, chose Harris, while Felmlee took 364 votes, or 24 percent; and Knepp won 250 votes, or 17 percent.
Harris said he looks forward to another two years in the legislature with Republican Gov. Tom Corbett.
"This is my ninth year in the legislature, eight of them under (Democratic) Gov. Ed Rendell when we (Republicans) were butting heads. (With Corbett), we are getting the chance to push our agenda."
The 82nd Congressional District includes Juniata County, portions of Snyder County, and Burnham Borough, Decatur Township, Derry Township, Granville Township, Juniata Terrace Borough and Lewistown Borough in Mifflin County.
Juniata County had a low voter turnout for the spring primary with 35.79 percent of its registered voters casting ballots Tuesday. The turnout was even lower in Mifflin County as only 25.87 percent of registered voters actually cast a ballot.
