Township Commissioner Chairman Loses Primary

Developer Martin Zawarski has defeated incumbent Arthur J. Murphy for the Republican nomination for at-large commissioner in Bethlehem Township, according to unofficial vote tallies issued by Northampton County.

In the township’s First Ward, incumbent Commissioner Thomas J. Nolan easily won the Republican nomination to retain his seat, defeating challenger Robert Furst by a 2-1 margin, again according to unofficial tallies posted by the county’s election website.

In November, Nolan will be challenged by Democratic nominee Nimita Kapoor Atiyeh. She is the wife of well-known local developer Abe Atiyeh and the only person who sought the party nomination.

No Democrats ran for the at-large chair currently held by Murphy. That means that barring a successful November write-in challenge, Zawarski may well be on his way to becoming Bethlehem Township commissioner in 2012.

With all 15 voting districts reporting, Zawarski had 506 votes to Murphy’s 356, an 18-percent margin, according to the county election website.

In the Third Ward, Phil Barnard defeated Harold H. Powell for the Republican nomination, also by a 2-1 margin. Barnard will face Martin W. Comer, a Democrat who ran unopposed in the primary, in November.

The current commissioner from the Third Ward, , announced earlier this year that he would be stepping down at the end of this term.