Ferrari easily wins race for county post
Paula Painter's strategy to move from the Republican to the Democratic ticket for Tuesday's General Election did not pan out, as Kelly Ferrari handily beat Painter in all but a few precincts to become the county's next prothonotary.
According to unofficial election results late last night, county voters chose Ferrari over Painter in all but 10 of the 72 precincts reported at 11:30 p.m. There are 89 precincts in the county.
With unofficial results from 72 precincts in, Ferrari was leading Painter 19,027 to 13,300.
“It is my honor to assume the position of Butler County Prothonotary,” Ferrari said in an emailed statement on Tuesday night. “As a lifetime Butler County resident, I look forward to serving my community.”
Painter earned the highest vote numbers in Cranberry West 2, where she beat Ferrari 274 to 239.
Ferrari beat Painter by more than 2,500 votes in the May primary. Painter was later nominated by the county Democratic Committee as its candidate for prothonotary in the General Election.
Painter has been the deputy prothonotary for 13 years and worked in the office for 18 years.
The prothonotary position was up for grabs as a result of the impending Dec. 31 retirement of Glenna Walters, who had won every election since 1983.
“I congratulate Glenna Walters on her upcoming retirement and thank Paula Painter for her dedication to the office and her campaign,” Ferrari's statement said. “I pride myself on the clean campaign I ran in both the primary and the general elections.”
Ferrari, who owns a court reporting business, said last week that the prothonotary's office is antiquated and in need of file-management software and other updates.Painter said she has streamlined many processes in the office and has the experience for the job.Recent comments on social media regarding the prothonotary race have been polarized, with some saying Painter was the obvious choice because of her experience and others saying the office is in need of “new blood.”“Considering the political climate of our nation, I strove to focus on the strength of my platform and ran on my own merits,” Ferrari said. “Butler County deserves servants with the best interests of the county in mind, not personal endeavors.”Ferrari said once she takes office in January, she will make prothonotary her full-time job and give up her court reporting business.The prothonotary is the record keeper for a county's civil court, and helps residents with passports, divorce decrees, rights of way for land disputes, fictitious names, naturalization records, court records or records on individuals.Only commonwealths have prothonotaries. All 13 original colonies were commonwealths and the designation has survived in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Kentucky and Massachusetts.“Thank you to the voters of Butler County who had faith in me to lead this office into a new era,” Ferrari said. “I look forward to acclimating to the prothonotary's office and bringing a fresh view of ideas to the table.”Painter could not be reached for comment on Tuesday night.
