Although the Nov. 4 general election is still nearly seven weeks away, the recent emergence of political signs and a slew of political fund raisers around the county appear to signal the campaign season is about to kick into high gear.

While the candidates are ready, the county wasn't until this week when the Mercer County Board of Elections officially certified the ballot, including the ballot positions for Mercer County Common Pleas Court judicial candidates.

How the names of Christopher St. John, Stephen R. Mirizio and John C. Reed would appear on the ballot had been a point of contention in some political circles for some time, according to Mercer County Director of Elections James R. Bennington.

The debate, Bennington said, centered around whether St. John's name should appear twice on the ballot because he collected the most votes from Democrats and Republicans in the May primary.

Two seats on the bench are on this year's ballot with the retirement of Judge Michael J. Wherry and the creation of a fourth judgeship for the county.

After months of behind-the-scenes debate, a decision was finally reached Wednesday when the Board of Elections, which includes Mercer County President Judge Francis J. Fornelli, Harry Lutton of Grove City and James Campbell of West Middlesex, "OK'd the ballot as it is," Bennington said.

The board's decision provided for St. John's name to be listed first, but only once, with both parties next to it, then followed by Mirizio's and Reed's.

Based on Pennsylvania election laws, Bennington said, candidates' names are to be listed in an order determined by the party of the presiding governor, which in this case is Democrat Ed Rendell. Since St. John of Clark earned the Democratic nod, his name was first. Mirizio of Farrell was listed second because he's also a Democrat, while Reed of Sharon was placed third because he's a Republican.

A secondary ballot concern was what would happen if somebody wanted to vote straight party, Bennington said.

"The straight party voters were concerned that it wouldn't work if the name wasn't on there twice, but that's totally untrue," Bennington said. "... The system we have shows both parties if a candidate is nominated by both parties in the primary."

So if someone wants to select a straight Democratic party ticket, votes would register for St. John and Mirizio. A straight Republican party ticket selection would register votes for St. John and Reed.

With the old lever machines in the past, Bennington said, the name was on the ballot twice under similar circumstances because of the mechanical limitations of those machines. But the electronic voting machines are "different than the old lever machines and some of the old-timers didn't understand that," he said.

Apparently the candidates did.

"They were sent a letter last week with a sample of the ballot as it's going to be with a deadline of noon Wednesday for any appeals," Bennington said. "The only one I did talk to was Christopher St. John. I explained it to him and I think he's satisfied with the solution. The other two didn't respond, so apparently they had no problem with it."

Bennington said he believes the board's decision was the correct one, but added that too much has been made of the issue.

"I don't see it as a big factor, I never did," he said. "I think name recognition is the biggest factor. The voter should be voting for a person, not a position on the ballot."