(This story was updated to accurately reflect the most current information and to add photos.)
Tom Ridge helped mentor Emily Mosco Merski, the newest judge on the Erie County Court of Common Pleas.
His influence was apparent on Jan. 5, as Merski took the oath of office.
The Erie native, former two-term Pennsylvania governor and first director of federal homeland security was a guest at Merski’s swearing-in ceremony. He received a rousing welcome from the capacity crowd in the 250-seat historic Courtroom H at the Erie County Courthouse.
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Ridge, 80, who suffered a stroke in 2021, used a walker and made a few comments to the crowd after his brother, Erie County Judge David Ridge, helped lead him into the courtroom.
Former Pennsylvania Governor and Erie native Tom Ridge enters Courtroom H inside the Erie County Courthouse to attend the swearing-in ceremony of judicial and Erie County elected officials in Erie on Jan. 5.
Ridge remarked on how he has known Merski, 43, since her birth, and he repeatedly gave her a thumbs up as she took to the podium before and after she was sworn in.
“To me,” Merski said of Ridge, “he is Uncle Tom.”
Merksi reflects on ‘full-circle moment’ with oath of office
Ridge was a member of Merski’s robing committee.
The group also included Merski’s parents, retired banker Marlene Mosco and Homer Mosco. They are close friends and confidantes of Ridge and his wife, Michele, a former director of the Erie County Public Library and another attendee at the swearing-in ceremony.
The Ridges formed a lifelong bond with the Merskis, and that connection extended to Emily Mosco Merski. As she said in her remarks, Tom Ridge was “the second person in the world to meet me when I was born. He was at the hospital.”
Emily Mosco Merski is sworn in as Erie County Common Pleas Court judge in Courtroom H during a ceremony at the Erie County Courthouse in Erie on Jan. 5.
“He’s been there throughout my life,” Merski told the crowd. “Most importantly, he was there when I went through law school. He hooded me” — fitted her with her academic hood — “when I graduated from law school.”
“He is here today in this full-circle moment,” Merski said. “He and his wife, Michele, are an excellent example of service to our community, to our commonwealth and to our nation.”
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Public service has also been a part of Merski’s immediate family. Her husband, Bob Merski, is a Democrat who represents the 2nd District in the Pennsylvania House. Her father-in-law, the elder Bob Merski, is a Democrat who served as Erie County sheriff from 1997 to 2013.
“Incredible supporters,” Emily Merski said of her father-in-law and his family.
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Merski, an Erie resident, is a former lawyer in private practice and former assistant Erie County public defender.
She is a registered Democrat who won the party’s nomination for judge in the May primary. She won a 10-year term as in November by defeating the Republican nominee, Jeremy Lightner, a chief deputy district attorney for Erie County.
Merski and Lightner shared a friendly conversation before she was sworn in. Their amicable exchange reflected the upbeat mood as other county officials, including new County Executive Christina Vogel, took oaths of office before Merski in Courtroom H.
Erie County Chief Deputy District Attorney Jeremy Lightner, left, talks with Emily Mosco Merski, right, at the Erie County Courthouse prior to Merski’s swearing-in as Erie County Common Pleas Court judge on Jan. 5. Merski defeated Lightner in the judicial race in November.
The officials thanked their supporters and promised transparency and cooperation — pledges that Vogel, a Democrat, particularly made part of her platform as she defeated Brenton Davis, a Republican who served one term as county executive and who frequently clashed with County Council.
“Erie County is strongest when we all work together and I’m committed to partnership over politics,” Vogel said.
Also sworn in during the Courtroom H ceremony were Christine Rush, the new district judge for Erie’s 1st Ward; Aubrea Hagerty-Haynes, reelected as Erie County clerk of records; Chris Campanelli, reelected as Erie County sheriff; new County Council member Jim Wertz; and reelected County Council member Jim Winarski. Another reelected County Council member, Charlie Bayle, was sworn in earlier in a separate ceremony.
Merski thanks those who aided her ‘journey’
Two judges on the Erie County Court of Common Pleas were retained for 10-year terms in November. They are John J. Mead and Joseph M. Walsh III. The judges in November elected Mead president judge, succeeding Walsh in the role as the county’s top administrative judge. Mead presided over the swearing-in ceremony.
As a Common Pleas Court judge, Merski will make $234,916 a year and join seven colleagues on the nine-member local bench. One of the seats is vacant due to the Jan. 4 retirement of Judge Daniel Brabender, 73, who served for 16 years. An election will fill his seat in 2027.
Merski is assigned to the local court’s Family Division. She said she is pleased, after a year of campaigning, to reach the bench — with Tom Ridge and others backing her.
“I want to congratulate my fellow elected officials,” Merski said after she was sworn in. “Just about a year ago we all started this journey, and today was the day we would only dare to dream about. And so here we are.”
Contact Ed Palattella at epalattella@usatodayco.com or 814-870-1813.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: With Tom Ridge in attendance, county officials take oaths of office