Common pleas judge candidates unopposed in Butler County
Both unopposed candidates for the two Butler County Common Pleas Court judge offices are looking forward to the Nov. 4 election so they can begin preparing for their new positions.
John Scialabba and Matthew McCune are likely to become the county’s next two Common Pleas Court judges after winning party nominations in the May 20 primary.
McCune, the son of retiring Judge Timothy McCune and an attorney with the Conlon Tarker law firm in Butler, led the Republican and Democratic ballots followed by Scialabba, an attorney and a partner at Frank, Gale, Bails & Pocrass, P.C., where he manages the firm’s Butler office.
Both candidates cross-filed in the primary and will appear on ballots for both parties in the upcoming election.
“I am looking forward to the election. Even though its all but decided, it will be nice to get the election certified so that I can really begin to formally prepare for the new position starting in January,” McCune said.
He said he hasn’t campaigned since the primary and has been focused on winding up his practice and fulfilling his duty to represent his clients.
“I would like the voters to know that I am grateful for their trust and I am committed to doing the public’s work with the high degree of honesty and respect it deserves and requires,” McCune said.
Scialabba said he looks forward to serving the county.
“I am very much looking forward to election day. It has been a privilege of a lifetime to be a part of this vital process that allows voters to have a voice in their judiciary. I have greatly appreciated the opportunity to meet with voters, listen to their perspectives and share my vision for upholding fairness and integrity in the court.
“I am humbled and honored to have received both the Republican and Democratic nominations for Common Pleas judge. I look forward to serving our community with compassion, with impartiality and with deep respect for the law and the lives it touches,” Scialabba said.
Since the primary, he said he has continued campaigning by going to community events and functions such as church festivals, pancake breakfasts, sporting events and gun bashes to meet with voters.
“This campaign has been an incredible opportunity to meet some of Butler’s finest and for that, I am beyond grateful,” Scialabba said.
One judge position is open due to the retirement of Judge Timothy McCune at the end of 2025. He serves in the criminal court division. The second is a new position representing the county's seventh Common Pleas Court judge.
The new judge’s position was created by Act 58 in 2023. The law added Common Pleas Court judge positions in six counties, including Butler, to reduce the caseloads of existing judges. Common Pleas judges are state employees, not county employees, whose starting annual salaries are $227,411 for 2025, They are elected to 10-year terms in office.
The last expansion of the Common Pleas Court bench came in 2006 when McCune took office as the sixth judge after winning the election in 2005. He said he plans to serve as a senior judge following retirement.
President Judge S. Michael Yeager will assign the new judges to serve in the court's criminal, civil, family, juvenile or orphan's divisions after the election.
