Ziemba steps down as Luzerne County Republican Party chair

Gene Ziemba resigned as Luzerne County Republican Party chairman, effective immediately, according to an online announcement.

Ziemba could not be reached for comment Monday afternoon.

His announcement said he had been battling a health issue.

“This has been on my mind the last few months, and recent days have made me come to my decision with my family,” he wrote.

A Harveys Lake resident, Ziemba was elected chair last July during a convention of committee members.

The party’s executive committee had called for unity in April 2024, when Chris Huntzinger had been elected temporary party chair a month after the resignation of prior chair PJ Pribula. When announcing his immediate departure from the post, Pribula had said he was “tired and sickened by the battle with visionaries that don’t have a clue and who bring discredit to the party of Lincoln.”

In his campaign for the chairmanship, Ziemba had presented a platform detailing his plans to increase voter registration and voter turnout and unite the party after every primary election.

His Monday resignation announcement cited “wonderful success” during his time as chair, including the county election of Republicans at the state and federal level. After years in the making, the county Republican voter registration also surpassed that of Democrats.

“We turned the county ‘Red!’ In fact our majority continues to increase because of your hard work. Our core values are most important to us all,” he wrote.

“This is not goodbye. We will see each other working hard for our great Republican friends,” he said.

Ziemba thanked his family for “putting up with my endless hours of answering or returning every phone call, email and text, all of which amounted to thousands since last summer.”

“They have also been understanding with my early morning meetings, evening meetings, weekends working for the party and often multiple same-day meetings and events,” he wrote. “All has been done as a labor of caring.”

Ziemba said he expects many will see him with his 89-year-old mother, Sylvia, because he will be spending more time with her.

County Council Chairman John Lombardo, a member of the county Republican Party’s executive committee, said LeeAnn McDermott is the de facto county party chair because she is party vice chair.

“I hope we’ll just continue the work of getting Republicans to win elections,” Lombardo said.

McDermott, a county council member, said Monday she will work through the May 20 primary election to support Republican candidates.

She does not know if she will want to remain chair for the remainder of Ziemba’s four-year term due to the time committment.

A Kingston Township resident, McDermott owns a real estate appraisal business and has a family in addition to serving on council.

“For now I’m going to give it a try,” she said.

McDermott thanked Ziemba for his service and “for helping the county turn red and getting us through the presidential election.” She said his health must be the “number one concern.”

Benjamin R. Herring, of Duryea, shared his views on Ziemba’s resignation Monday, noting he was speaking as a citizen and not as president of the Citizens Advisory of Pennsylvania organization.

“I respect Mr. Ziemba greatly and was able to witness his integrity and character over the past year. His decision to resign is a testament to that same character, to put those he cares about ahead of him and care for his mother. I wish Gene nothing but the best,” Herring wrote.

Herring urged all county Republican voters to consider why two party chairs have resigned within the past 14 months.

“We cannot let agitators with self-interests divide and manipulate us as I’ve unfortunately seen firsthand in the past four months,” Herring said.

The next party chair must have “unwavering leadership abilities to recognize and fix the issues that are persisting, picking up where Chairman Ziemba left off,” Herring said.

“I’m hopeful the executive committee chooses the right person for the job, supports them fully, and removes the distractions. Otherwise, we’ll be having this conversation again within the year,” Herring said.