It was a day of firsts at the Delaware County Courthouse yesterday.
Two-party government arrived in Delaware County.
Democrats Kevin Madden and Brian Zidek took the oath of office and were sworn in as members of Delaware County Council.
They are the first Democrats to sit on the county's ruling body since the Home Rule Charter was adopted back in the mid-70's, in effect ending mandatory minority party representation.
And it wasn't just Council that saw a shakeup.
Three new county row officers also were sworn in. All three were Democrats. That would include new county Sheriff Jerry Sanders, thus becoming the first African-American to hold a county row office.
Madden and Zidek led the charge in the November election, when Democrats finally put their newfound voter registration to work and muscled their way past incumbent Republican County Councilman Dave White and his running mate, longtime Magisterial District Judge John Perfetti.
It did not take long for something else that could be considered fairly historic to occur.
County Council held its reorganization meeting, and the vote was not unanimous.
Incumbent Councilman John McBlain was named the new chairman, and Colleen Morrone vice chairman. But on a 3-2 vote.
You have to go back to Andy Lewis voting against the bond issue to build that soccer stadium in Chester to find the last time a no vote was cast by what for decades has been the all-Republican Council.
Madden questioned why Morrone, who had been serving as vice chairman, was not elevated to the top spot.
Both he and Zidek voted against the nominations.
But both also talked about a spirit of bipartisan government they hoped to instill in the county courthouse.
We wish them good luck.
That would indeed be historic.
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