Following the assassination of political activist Charlie Kirk, Ambler’s elected tax collector, Jennifer Stomsky, implored Democrats on Facebook to “GET A FUCKING SPINE” and that she was tired of being told that “violence is not the answer,” and offered that “history is filled with blood.”

In the comment section of her post, she offered, “let’s make some more martyrs.”

In the realm of politics, Stomsky is not just the tax collector, an office she was first elected to in 2017. Within the Democratic Party, she has served as the municipal leader for Ambler since 2018 and as the Area Vice-Chair of Area 14 (comprising Ambler, Lower Gwynedd, and Whitpain) of the Montgomery County Democratic Committee since 2022. Stomsky is currently seeking re-election as tax collector. She is the leader of the Democratic Party in Ambler and second-in-command for the communities that encompass the Wissahickon School District. In these roles, she plays a significant part in recruiting candidates for local and school board elections.

We sought comment from Stomsky on her post and comments, and did not receive a response. We also sought comments from the other elected officials in Ambler and received a statement from Borough Council President Glynnis Siskind, who stated that Ambler’s elected officials have the right to free speech on their personal social media pages. Siskland did not directly address the statements made by Stomsky. Siskind’s statement in full:

Ambler Borough’s elected officials enjoy freedom of speech on their personal social media pages. Their individual opinions do not necessarily reflect those of Ambler Borough Council or Ambler Borough. 

We responded back to all of the council members and asked if everyone agreed with the statement and did not receive any responses.

Mayor Jeannie Sorg had also been included in these emails, and we asked her directly, as the official who oversees the police department, whether she was “concerned with the tax collector’s promotion of political violence?” We did not receive a response from the mayor.

We also contacted Democratic Party officials for comment. Area Leader (14) Joyce Keller, who serves as a Whitpain Township Supervisor, did not respond to our inquiry.

The Board Chair of the Montgomery County Democratic Committee pointed to a statement made by Governor Josh Shapiro condemning those of either party who advocated for political violence. The full statement:

I personally, and all Democrats, should follow the lead of Governor Shapiro.

We don’t cherry-pick condemning anyone advocating for, or engaging in, political violence, ever, period, full stop.

Political violence is an assault on our democracy whether it’s the firebombing of the family residence of our Jewish Governor on Passover or the cold-blooded killing of a social media influencer on a college campus.

No matter the alleged provocation, ideology or political party—no matter how strenuously we may disagree—political violence is always reprehensible and should be universally condemned without hesitation or qualification.

According to Salus, Stomsky’s party political positions are determined by the local committee for the municipality and the area (Ambler, Lower Gwynedd, and Whitpain). As the incumbent candidate for Ambler’s tax collector, her endorsement was determined by the committee people of Ambler.

In the thread of comments under Stomsky’s initial post, Ambler Borough Councilperson Amy Hughes Kelly (D) responded that she could not argue with Stomsky’s statement.

While we have not obtained all the comments made in response to Stomsky’s post (we also do not know who the 36 people who “liked” it are), there wasn’t a single person who admonished Stomsky for promoting political violence. When given the opportunity to address the statement, members of the borough council, Mayor Sorg, and the local Democratic Party leader also chose not to address the statement. Only the Democratic Party’s county leadership chose to address her comments.

Let us know what you think in the comments on Facebook.

Photo: Facebook Page, Ambler Borough Tax Collector Jennifer Stomsky. Please note that AroundAmbler.com added the text bubble.