Chester County has tapped a new director of voter services after the department’s previous leader resigned following election errors and a series of complaints from former employees.
Michele DiCaprio, a consultant for a telecommunications company and a former foreign service officer for USAID, will begin her tenure on July 20, the county announced Wednesday.
“I am honored to join Chester County,” said DiCaprio, a West Chester resident, in a county news release. “I look forward to working with the Voter Services team to ensure secure, accurate, and efficient elections for every voter in Chester County. Elections are the foundation of our democracy, and I am committed to serving voters with integrity and transparency.”
DiCaprio will be inheriting an office that has recently been enraptured by controversy, including high staff turnover, allegations of a hostile work environment, and a series of election administration-related problems — most notably leaving approximately 75,000 independent and unaffiliated voters off the poll books during the November 2025 local election.
Everyone who wanted to vote was able to, the county said, with 12,000 voters casting provisional ballots. But the episode bruised residents’ trust in the county’s voting security, exemplified at a public meeting in February.
An independent law firm investigation ultimately found that human error and poor oversight led to the incident, but it did not call for the resignation of personnel, including Karen Barsoum, the former voter services director.
Barsoum announced her resignation in March and her last day was June 12.
Chester County Administrator Erik Walschburger and Deputy County Administrator Megan Moser said in the county news release that DiCaprio’s experience as a foreign service officer makes her a strong fit for the role.
DiCaprio spent five years with USAID in Mozambique leading the Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance team working on elections, counterterrorism, and other issues, according to her LinkedIn page.
“As a foreign service officer, Michele has spent her career leading complex international operations in fast-paced environments while ensuring federal compliance,“ Walschburger said.
”Through her years of work on election operations and counterterrorism program evaluation, she has established a strong track record of developing high-performing teams, strengthening organizational effectiveness, and managing critical public-facing services,” he continued.