Yesterday, Republican Sen. Don White became the second Republican state senator in as many weeks to announce (having apparently forgotten how to count to four-the length in years of a PA Senate term) that he’s got places he’d rather be.
This follows a similar “meh I just aint feeling it” mic drop by GOP Senator Rich Alloway.
Special elections will be set to fill their seats once their retirements take effect.
A special election is already set for April 2 to fill the vacancy created when Republican Guy Reschenthaler advanced to a seat in the U.S. Congress.
These departures (by my count) reduce the sitting Republicans majority of the 50-seat body to 26. Keep in mind this is a chamber Republicans have controlled since 1994.
As recently as last year, the GOP enjoyed a 2/3 majority in the chamber before Dems closed the gap by flipping 5 seats in the November.
Maybe these two most recent walk-aways are for legitimate private, personal reasons and these seats are not primed to flip in the special elections, but I’m surprised this hasn’t been on the radar for discussion here at dkos as these specials will be tied up with the special election to replace Marino in the U.S. House as well.
www.pennlive.com/…
I ought to add, in the midst of this (and I’ve wondered if there is not some connection) PA’s Dem Governor Tom Wolf has been making what seems a principled call for Democrat State Senator Daylin Leach to resign following the opening of a Senate Democratic Caucus internal investigation into a private criminal complaint and charge of sexual assault against Leach.
www.pennlive.com/…
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