READING, Pa. — Reading Democrats who voted in Tuesday’s primary election had a choice of three candidates who were hoping to earn their party’s nomination for city council president, and as of Wednesday morning, the two leading candidates were separated by only a handful of votes.

The current president and a council veteran, Donna Reed, faced challenges from two of her colleagues, District One’s Vanessa Campos and District Two’s Jaime Baez Jr., both of whom joined the council last year.

Reed, a former journalist, was appointed to lead the council in January 2023, after Johanny Cepeda-Freytiz gave up her seat to join the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Reed was then elected that November to serve a two-year term. Prior to that, she represented the city’s District Five.

Baez, who has two years left on his district council term, works as a constituent services adviser in Cepeda-Freytiz’ state House office. He touted the endorsements of Mayor Eddie Morán and the council’s vice president, Melissa Ventura, as well as the Reading Fraternal Order of Police.

Campos, who was elected in 2023 to serve the last two years of the term vacated by Brianna Tyson, is a licensed real estate agent and an education specialist for the Berks County Intermediate Unit. She previously taught in the Reading School District.

Campos also appeared to secure the nomination for re-election to her district council seat with 78% of the vote over her opponent, Denise Johnson.

The candidate who is declared the winner of the council president’s primary election will face Republican Evelyn Morrison, who ran unopposed in her party’s primary election. She lost to Reed in the general election two years ago.

The council president is elected to a four-year term. The part-time position is paid an annual salary of $6,875.

As for the Democratic primary race in District One, Campos received 78% of the vote to Johnson’s 22%.

No Republican sought the nomination for the District One seat.

In the Democratic primary race for District Four, Ray Baker led Emmanuel Rodriguez with 73% of the vote. 

Baker, who lives in College Heights, has worked as an assistant district attorney for nearly eight years. He has the endorsement of the district’s current councilman, Wesley Butler, who chose not to seek reelection.

Baker will face Gary Colby, the lone candidate on the Republican ballot, in November’s general election.

In the Democratic primary election for Reading’s District Five, the incumbent, Rafael Nunez, had 51% of the vote. His challenger, Sheila Perez, had 49%.

Nunez, who was born in the Dominican Republic, has lived in Reading for more than two decades. With 67% of the vote in the 2023 general election, Nunez defeated Perez, who ran as an independent, to win the remainder of Reed’s term in District Five.

In 2017’s general election, Nunez ran as a Republican in the race for city council president. She lost to the then-incumbent, Democrat Jeff Waltman.

No Republican sought the party’s nomination in the District Five race.

District council members are paid an annual salary of $6,250.