A political veteran is joining forces with a decorated military veteran in the hope that they can maintain Republican-control of the Berks County Board of Commissioners.
Commissioner Christian Leinbach and Will Tobin announced Wednesday at a campaign event at the Reading Regional Airport that they will be running as a team for the nominations from their party for positions on the board.
Tobin will replace Commissioner Michael Rivera as Leinbach’s running mate. Rivera announced in April that he will not run for a third term in 2027.
Tobin, who currently serves as deputy director of the Berks County Veterans Affairs Office, is a retired chief warrant officer in the Army who served in both Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
A few weeks ago, when Tobin was watching as Rivera made the announcement that he would not run for reelection, he suddenly became really upset, he said. He said he was frustrated because he believed the county had a solid foundation that was now in jeopardy.
“After that press conference I took some time to reflect and asked myself, ‘What can I do to help the community that has given me so much?’” he said. “Do I help them find a candidate? Do I put my name in the hat?
“And after three days, I put my name in the hat.”
Will Tobin, who currently serves as deputy director of the Berks County Veterans Affairs Office, has announced that he will be running for the Republican nomination to the Berks County Board of Commissioners in the 2027 primary.
(KAREN SHUEY – READING EAGLE)
Tobin said he felt compelled to enter the world of county government because he feels a debt of gratitude towards Berks, a place that he said he owes so much to.
While he was born in Brooklyn, in the fall of 1990 he moved with his mother and brother to Berks to create a new life. He was 7 years old but he said he still remembers that day vividly.
“Berks County welcomed us with open arms,” he said. “My mother did everything she could to ensure that we had clothes on our back and there was always food on the table. But I know darn well that she went to bed hungry a few times.”
At the age of 16 he dropped out of high school, but people like his ROTC instructor reached out to him and urged him to take his GED. He decided to pursue that route, and took classes at Reading Area Community College and earned his GED in the summer of 2000.
Then he met a recruiter who helped get him into the military. But his call to service didn’t make him forget about the place that helped set him on a path to success, he said.
“My kids were raised here as I served in the military for 23 years,” he said. “I ensured that Berks County remained my home.”
After retiring from the Army, Tobin moved to Mohnton and continued to serve. He got a job as a park ranger with Berks County Parks and Recreation, thanks to the help of the department director Brendan Lederer.
“He took a chance on me because he knew I needed to integrate myself back into the civilian workforce,” he said. “Once again, the people of Berks County were there for me.”
And then it was Rivera who encouraged Tobin to apply for a position at the Berks County Veterans Affairs Office.
“Our team at the department, working together, has made the office the best in the state,” he said proudly.
Tobin said he hopes, if elected, to be able to help Berks craft a steady path toward a thriving future.
“Growing up in Berks County, I have seen time and time again that this county will take one step forward and two steps backward,” he said. “We had industries that offered work but slowly those places began to close their doors and employment became scarce at a time when the population kept growing.”
Tobin said he has seen a steady improvement for the county with Commissioners Leinbach and Rivera at the helm over the past several years, including efforts to revitalize the Reading Regional Railroad, to restore passenger rail to Philadelphia, to encourage colleges to build satellite campuses in downtown Reading and to strengthen the county’s financial outlook.
“We need leadership to ensure that these things continue,” he said.
Tobin acknowledged that he’s not a politician, saying he’s just a regular guy who cares about the community and the people who have given him so much.
Leinbach told the crowd that he believes Tobin represents the future, noting that if he is reelected in 2027 it will be for his final term in office.
“This man has integrity, this is a man of faith, this is a man who knows what it means to work hard, this man knows what it means to deal with hardship in your life, this man has made a difference in the lives of Berks Countians,” he said.
All three commissioner positions are up for election next year. Two Democrats and two Republicans will be chosen by voters in the primary election to move onto the general election in the fall where the top three vote-getters will win seats on the board.
Rivera, who made history as the first Latino to serve as commissioner when he was first elected to the post in 2019, said he decided not to seek reelection so he can focus on his family real estate business.
Leinbach, who has served as a commissioner since 2008, joined forces with Rivera in 2019 in the hope the two Republican candidates could maintain GOP control of the board. They succeeded in the primary, defeating longtime incumbent Mark Scott, and went on to take home two of the three county commissioner seats that fall.
Democratic commissioner Dante Santoni Jr. has not announced whether he will run for reelection. No other Democratic candidates have publicly announced their intention to run for commissioner.