Carole Aichele plants her arms on the polished table in a small conference room on the fifth-floor of the courthouse and leans forward. "You want to talk about what I've done?" There's no mistaking it for a question: It's a command.

Aichele is seeking her second term as county commissioner. Of all the candidates running -- both Republican and Democrat -- she is the only incumbent. The only candidate with a track record. "I made fiscal management a priority. I made open space a priority. I made open and honest government a priority. I made promises and I kept my promises," she is saying. But if you listen carefully what you hear is the voice of an accomplished woman saying: You want to attack me on my record. Well, bring it on brother.

This is the voice of a woman who has no intention of sliding back into the political shadows because of her recent loss in a state senate race to Andy Dinniman, a Democrat and former county commissioner.

"It's all about fiscal responsibility," she continues. "My pledge was to keep taxes as low as I possibly could and I've kept that promise." During Aichele's four years on the three-member board of commissioners -- two of which she served as chairperson -- tax increases were held below the cost of living index. "What I did was peg tax increases so they couldn't exceed the cost of living. We buy gas just like citizens buy gas. We buy building supplies just like people buy supplies. So, we're structured to the same kind of expenses as all of our citizens. This is my point: I'm not going to ask others to do what we're not willing to do ourselves."

This year the county approved a $433.5 million budget that calls for a tax increase slightly more than one-tenth of a mill. When Aichele and Donald Mancini came into office in 2004, the real estate tax rate stood at 3.414 mills; today, three years later, it is 3.804 mills, an increase of slightly less than four-tenths of a mill. In Chester County one mill equals $34.5 million in collected real estate taxes. Real estate taxes generate only $135.2 million of the $433.5 million budget; state and federal grants pump $191.5 million in to county coffers. The remaining 25 percent comes from departmental earnings, fund recoveries, transfers, and other revenues.

Aichele is sliding into her comfort zone. A trained economist with a degree from Cornell University, she is eager to talk about county finances. Dressed in a gray suit with sharp creases, Aichele eases back in the conference room overlooking a West Chester's skyline dramatically being changed by a $160 million courthouse expansion project.

When Aichele and Don Mancini took office in January 2004, they inherited the $160 million in capital projects. They also promised an additional $60 million to Landscapes, the county's award-winning open space program. In all, says Aichele, the county was $300 million in debt. "For every $25 million we borrow, it adds $2 million in debt service," she said. "When we came in it would have meant $18 million in new taxes."

Aichele said both she and Mancini were committed to moving the capital projects forwarded and to keeping a campaign promise to continue funding Landscapes. Today, Aichele says she and Mancini have taken a great open space program and matured it into Landscapes 2. "We made it better."

Meanwhile, there was the nagging problem of all that debt. According to the 2007 budget, .75 of a mill goes to financing the county's debt. That number, insists Aichele, would be higher had the county not been awarded a Triple Aaa bond rating by Moody's Investors Service.

Here, Aichele pauses to hark back to her days on the Tredyffrin-Easttown school board. "When I was there we worked very hard with the other district's in Chester County to figure out how Moody's awarded a Triple Aaa rating. We spent hours trying to outsmart them. So, when I got here I knew the kind of things we needed to do to get the boxes checked to get a Triple Aaa rating. And we began the process in January 2004. There was a couple of things we needed to do. The most difficult was establishing the strengths of the communities' economy, and that was clearly there. There was the management of some of our financial affairs that we needed to address. One of them quite frankly was being willing to be transparent about taxes," said Aichele.

Immediately after taking office, Aichele called upon the county's finance department to prepare monthly financial reports explaining how the money was being collected and how it was being spent in relation to the budget. Those reports are now made public each month. The monthly reports and the entire county budget are posted on the county's website.

Last year the Moody's Investors Service awarded the county a Triple Aaa bond rating. Said Moody's at the time: "The upgrade to Aaa reflects the county's strong financial management, diverse and expanding tax base, strong socioeconomic profile and manageable debt position."

Even county Commissioner Pat O'Donnell, the lone Democrat on the three member board of commissioners, noted its significance. "We can do more with our money because we will be paying less in interest," he said.

Only 45 counties in the nation have a Triple Aaa rating. "It can be compared to reaching the top of Mt. Everest; few accomplish it and many wish they could," said Mark Rupis, the county's director of administration."

Aichele said the improved bond rating allowed the county to refinance much of its debt at a lower interest rate. "The difference between 17 and 5 basis points on $300 million over 20 years is millions of dollars in savings."

These are numbers that Aichele obviously enjoys referencing to her reelection bid. But this winter O'Donnell brought attention to another set of numbers while speaking at a Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry lunch. O'Donnell reminded the group that included some of the county's wealthiest business leaders there are 45,000 people in Chester County who don't have health insurance; of the 70,000 students in public schools here 7,600 are entitled to free lunches; and in six elementary schools in the county, one quarter of the students come from who homes which survive on incomes below the poverty line.

So, how do these numbers square with Chester County ranking 33rd among the wealthiest counties in the country? Aichele says they don't square. "I for one would like to see on a national level the legislators address health care." Aichele does serve on the board of the Brandywine Health Foundation, a non-profit group that is now building a $17 million health and senior housing facility in Coatesville's East End. The facility will provide health and dental care for those having no or little health insurance.

Still, she points out, the those county residents in need are a small number. "But that number is still too large. I would like that number to be reduced," she said.

What the county is doing, she said, is spending $226 million -- more than half of its $433 million budget -- on human services. "We are very aggressive at going after state funding (for human services). We have provided funding that comes through the grant process to faith-based groups." She said a committee assigns the funding based on need and the ability of the organization to provide the services.

In March, the county awarded $250,000 to the Lord's Pantry in Downingtown, a non-profit organization established in the 1960's to distribute food to Downingtown area families in need. Last year, the faith-based group served 400 families that included 1,230 people. All of the households were below 50 percent of the Area Median Income. To qualify a family of one must make less than $25,250 and a family of four must make less than $36,500 a year to be considered below the 50 percent AMI.

"We are very aggressive in getting funding," said Aichele. "But there is always going to be need."

When Andy Dinniman, a Democrat, was county commissioner he often called for the county to set aside 40 percent of its available land for open space. Indeed, open space preservation is such a hot-button issue in Chester County it is unimaginable that any candidate for a countywide office could get elected if they opposed it. But, while the county is buying up development rights with tax dollars, it is having a disquieting effect on affordable housing. The county can't take 40 percent of its landmass off the market without driving up the cost of the remaining 60 percent.

"First of all lets put some numbers on the table," responds Aichele. "Chester County has 480,000 acres. Almost 100,000 acres are already either preserved or protect. So, we're almost at 20 percent now. That's a good thing. This goes to smart development. Now we have to look more at our developed areas, our boroughs and the city of Coatesville.

"As our population matures. There is a demand for housing in urban settings. They want to move to a place that has a lot of amenities that their single family home on a half acres didn't have. Urban revitalization has to be a part of Landscapes."

According to Aichele, the county has spent $170 million on Landscapes, $20 million of which has gone to urban revitalization.

"It's not only affordable housing; it's public transportation to the boroughs and the city. It's a two part option," said Aichele. "If you're a baby boomer approaching 60 and if you could live in quality housing in say Downingtown and you could get on a train and go into the city (Philadelphia), it would be an advantage."

This past year the county offered early retirement to its more senior -- and expensive -- employees. One hundred and sixty seven opted to take part in the program, saving the county $2 million in salaries. That is $2 million, says Aichele, the county will be saving each year for several years.

Aichele is expected to win the Republican primary easily. She says she is excited about running in the general election with Terance Farrell, the county Register of Deeds, who is also seeking the Republican nomination in next month's primary. The only other candidate is Sandy Moser, a late entry in the GOP primary race. A fourth candidate, county Treasurer Alan Randzin dropped out of the Republican primary race.

Should Aichele and Farrell win the Republican primary, they will face a Democratic party emboldened by the elections of Dinniman and Barbara McIlvaine-Smith. Dinniman soundly defeated Aichele for the unexpired term of state Sen. Robert Thompson who died in office. It is an issue she has come to terms with. "I was running against a candidate who had a 15-year head start of me in a race that last only 66 days," Aichele said. "The issues the voters were focusing on were dissatisfaction with the leadership in Washington and in Harrisburg. If I heard it once I hear it a million times, the voters were very satisfied with Chester County government leadership."

Fiscal accountability, open space preservation, and open and honest government are the hallmarks Aichele sees as her accomplishments. I'm proud of my record. I hope their (Democrats) attacks are substantive," Aichele said. "I would like to see election debate that is fact based and reflects a commitment to a better Chester County. I would like to take the high road."

Translation: She's prepared for battle