EASTON, Pa. — Nazareth resident Jeffrey Corpora is the newest member of Northampton County Council after a judge appointed him Tuesday to the body’s vacant seat.
Corpora was not one of 25 people who applied last month to fill the seat and was not interviewed by council.
In his order, Judge Craig Dally also dismissed a filing from three council members asking that Paul Anthony, business manager for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 375, be appointed.
“I’m pretty grateful for this pick,” said Northampton County Council President Lori Vargo Heffner on Tuesday night.
She said she was eager to move on from an acrimonious fight over who should fill the seat.
“It's a chance for a fresh start on council or a reset,” she said.
“The judge made his own decision, and he felt he knew this person… At the end of the day, council couldn't break their impasse, and so that's the consequence.”
Corpora, a retired Easton Area High School history teacher, was a member of Nazareth Borough Council at the time of his appointment Tuesday. He will need to resign his seat in order to become a county commissioner.
A Democrat, Corpora won a two-year term on Nazareth Borough Council last November after being appointed to fill a vacant seat earlier in 2023. He currently works as compliance officer at Metro Beauty Academy in Allentown and is an adjunct faculty member in education at Moravian University.
The seat on county council first opened up in January, when Tara Zrinski resigned to become county controller.
Per the county’s home rule charter, members of county council have the first opportunity to appoint someone to a vacant county office.
After 12 failed votes and more than three hours of debate failed to yield a consensus, council voted last week 5-3 to have a judge decide instead.
Corpora’s appointment is effective immediately, according to the county’s home rule charter.
Democrats hold a 6-3 majority over Republicans with Corpora's appointment.
