Zando-Dennis sails to victory over Koorie for Easton City Council seat

EASTON, Pa. — Democrat Julie Zando-Dennis locked down the District 2 seat for Easton City Council, beating out Republican Sharbel Koorie by a nearly 2-to1 margin.

Zando-Dennis ended the evening Tuesday with 705 votes to Koorie’s 384, securing 65% of the vote, according to complete but unofficial Northampton County election returns.

In unopposed races, Democrat Frank Graziano III took 2,041 votes for the District 1 seat, and Democrat Susan Hartranft-Bittinger got 1,269 votes for the District 3 seat. Neither had an opponent on the ballot.

Zando-Dennis celebrated her victory Tuesday night and said she is excited to see the progress to be made in her neighborhood.

“I want to thank my community, and I look forward to the empowerment of the West Ward, and community building in the West Ward,” Zando-Dennis said, adding she is eager to see the neighborhood assert its strengths.

Zando-Dennis’s campaign was built largely upon her history as an active community member, working with the West Ward Neighborhood Partnership, the West Ward Community Initiative, various committees, and the West Ward Market.

She has prioritized practical development for Easton, looking to integrate new builds into the historic aesthetic of Easton while respecting residents’ opinions on the matter.

Scaling projects to address issues like affordable housing without overwhelming or drastically altering the feel of Easton is an important goal, she said.

She also has expressed an interest in holding developers responsible for issues like parking allocation, pointing out some recent projects have been able to skirt the issue by purchasing blocks of parking in the city garages – which she said should be open to accommodate other Easton residents and visitors.