Wissahickon Dems Host Meet and Greet

With only three weeks remaining until the local elections, the Wissahickon Democratic Party held a candidate meet-and greet on Wednesday night at Ambler's .

"We're hoping to increase enthusiasm for the election and help with the voter turnout effort," said Sibby Phiambolis, co-leader of the Wissahickon Dems.  "We think this election is very important since it will determine control of the county. For the people of Montgomery County, this is a critical election."

The event featured a total of seven candidates, including school board hopefuls and incumbent row officers seeking reelection.

"The county has a slate of (democratic) candidates that is very solid, lead by Josh Shapiro and Leslie Richards," said  Shelly Waldman, co-leader of the Wissahickon Dems.  "I think the two of them have great momentum going, and they'll both be wonderful commissioners."

The Democratic county commissioner ticket of Josh Shapiro and Leslie Richards entered the cafe to a huge round of applause, before taking the stage to stress the importance of this year's elections. 

Afterwards, the duo walked throughout the crowd, answering questions and offering words of encouragement to their fellow democratic candidates.

"We've been working at this since February, so we're not just coming in three weeks before the election," said Richards.  "We've been in Ambler a dozen of times.   We've spoken to the small business owners.  We've walked the streets with the mayor.  We're repeatedly coming back, and the people of Ambler are aware of our commitment."

Shapiro spoke with confidence regarding their campaign's plans over the coming weeks.

"We've exceeded the benchmarks we've set for ourselves," said Shapiro.  "We're in such a strong position to be able to communicate our positive message to the voters of Montgomery County.  We want to make sure that voters know what we stand for, and to make sure they're clear of the differences between ourselves and our opponents."

Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz was originally scheduled to appear at the meet-and-greet, but was forced to cancel after her presence was requested in California.  Instead, a representative from the congresswoman's office spoke on her behalf.

Phiambolis and Waldman--who coordinated the event--seemed pleased with the overall turnout.

"All things considered, it's a nice turnout," added Waldman.  "If the weather cooperated a bit more then we'd probably have an even larger group."

The general elections will be held on Tuesday, November 8th.