Paul “PJ” Wendel
MAYVILLE – The Jamestown Post-Journal is reporting that the Chautauqua County Republican Committee has made its recommendation on who should be appointed to fill the vacant County Executive position.
On Thursday, the committee met in a closed-door meeting to choose between Republican Legislators Paul “PJ” Wendel of Lakewood and Mark Odell of Brocton – who both announced their intention to seek the party’s nomination after former County Executive George Borrello left office to serve in the State Senate.
Following the meeting, it was announced that Wendel was the committee’s recommendation. As a result, that recommendation will now be forwarded to the Chautauqua County Legislature for its consideration, with a formal vote on the appointment likely to take place during the Dec. 18 voting session.
The process of selecting a county executive to fill out the remainder of a term when the position is vacated was updated this past summer, when the legislature unanimously approved a plan to allow the respective party of the previous office holder to make a recommendation. Because Borrello is a Republican, the county republican committee was given the opportunity to make the recommendation.
Wendel is a physical education teacher at Falconer who was first elected to the county Legislature in 2012. He has been chairman of the legislature since January 2018.
Once Wendel is formally appointed by the legislature, then his district 10 seat will be vacant and the Republican committees in both Busti and Jamestown will meet to determine a recommendation for his replacement.
County Attorney Stephen Abdella will continue to serve as the acting county executive until Wendel is confirmed by the county Legislature.
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