Despite winning reelection in November 2025, Harrisville Councilwoman Mary Ann Hughes was almost replaced on the board after election certificates failed to arrive on time.

Harrisville Borough’s website listed a special meeting for Friday, Jan. 16, to address “vacant elected borough offices.” The meeting was ultimately canceled the day before, prompting a series of right-to-know requests by the Butler Eagle to learn about the meeting and its cancellation.

According to event details on the borough’s calendar, the meeting was to be held to “formally declare any elected positions from the most recent municipal election that were not accepted by the winning candidate as vacant, due to the failure of the elected individual to take the oath of office within the time required by law.”

The meeting details were updated to announce it was canceled at 3:57 p.m. Jan. 15.

Councilwoman Mary Ann Hughes said the vacant seat in question was in reference to her own, as she never even learned she won the election. She said she only learned by seeing signage for the special meeting posted on the borough office’s door.

“I called elections and county Commissioner Leslie Osche. When I got Osche on the phone, I asked her if I won. She told me ‘yes,’” she said.

Hughes said after every election cycle, she would receive her certificate of election in the mail. After not receiving it around the same time in 2025, she assumed she did not win reelection. She said she stopped monitoring her borough email afterward and does not communicate with borough officials by phone.

She said she later learned that Harrisville picked up the certificates, but she never received hers.

“They told the county it would send a representative to come get the certificates. Well, it seems they got them and are keeping them all in the borough office,” Hughes said.

She said she felt as if the borough was intentionally hiding the result from her to replace her. She said she feels she needed to know of the position because there was an ethical responsibility to the voters who chose her.

“I really feel like they wanted me out of my council seat,” she said.

According to emails obtained by the Butler Eagle, Butler County Bureau of Elections Director Chantell McCurdy reached out to Harrisville Borough on Jan. 14 to advise borough officials of the situation. The official election results and copies of each winning candidates’ certificate of election were attached to her email.

“It has come to our attention that at least one of the duly elected members of your council has yet to be contacted regarding their certificate of election and swearing in ceremony,” McCurdy wrote. “A representative of Harrisville Borough picked up the certificates from the Bureau of Elections in the middle of December.”

Council President April Anschutz responded the next morning, Jan. 15, to say the borough followed established procedures and requirements throughout the process.

“The Borough of Harrisville remains in possession of certificate(s) for the winning elected positions that have not provided the required documentation. All winning council candidates were sent notice and the agenda for the scheduled organizational/swearing-in public meeting that was held in Harrisville,” she wrote in her email.

Hughes said she received the agenda for the meeting, but was not monitoring the email at the time because of the lack of a delivered certificate.

Anschutz said in the email the one remaining candidate failed to submit required paperwork or take the oath of office.

“It should also be noted that the candidate who has not provided the required documentation has stated — via email, social media and a handwritten letter — that they were no longer serving on council, as they are now just a resident,” she said.

But Hughes said she never expressed intentions to resign in her letter nor through email.

“April told the county that I turned in a resignation letter, but I did not,” she said. “I didn’t even know I had won, how was I going to resign?”

The Butler Eagle submitted a right to know request on April 1 to obtain the referenced email and letter and waited to see if a prompt response could clarify the discrepancy between the women’s statements, but the borough responded April 7 to indicate the request is “under review.”

“Due to the need for additional time to conduct a thorough search and legal review of potentially responsive records, an extension of up to 30 days is necessary to complete this process,” the email said.

Anschutz said the county previously contacted the borough to tell them their certificates were accidentally sent to Harmony Borough. She added the borough facilitated the pickup of write-in certificates specifically in December and said no lists were provided of “who actually won” or any additional write-ins.

“Upon review with our solicitor, I have found no statutory or procedural requirement obligating the Borough to individually reach out to each candidate,” she wrote in the email.

Harmony Borough Secretary Amy Brown said she recalls the borough receiving incorrect certificates before they were picked up and replaced. She said she believes she remembers them being Harrisville’s.

Butler County Bureau of Elections could not be reached for comment. Anschutz declined to further comment on the matter.