We have been winning special elections in PA, as Democrats have been doing across the country. A win by
Democrat Andy Dinniman in the swing Philadelphia suburbs on May 16 would really put the PA Republicans on the defensive. As this week's Republican blow-off of the property tax vote shows, it's past time to kick the Republicans out of power in Harrisburg.
Whoever wins the state Senate seat on May 16 gets 2 1/2 years to solidify their hold on it, and this special election will help determine whether Ed Rendell has a successful second term or whether he has to spend four years fending off bad legislation pushed by the mini-Rick Santorums currently dominating the Republican legislature in Harrisburg.
On Friday, the Philadelphia Inquirer gave
Andy Dinniman a boost by
endorsing him:
(emphasis added)
This May 16 special election is to fill the remaining two years of the term of State. Sen. Robert J. Thompson, who died in January. ... So, in addition to primaries, 19th District voters have a real seat to fill ....
Dinniman believes that the well-off in one of the state's wealthiest counties shouldn't overlook its poor. They're interconnected. And he's stepped up with his work for the homeless and the hungry. He believes you save open space by revitalizing urban spaces. The issues are interconnected. He's stepped up there too, helping create the county's acclaimed Landscapes program.
He's earned a promotion to State Senate, where he plans to keep stepping up, reminding Harrisburg lawmakers that property taxes, education, health care, the environment, globalization are all - you guessed it - interconnected.
Why you should care if you live outside PA: Even after the next census, we'll probably have 18 seats in the U.S. House, and we can't allow another Republican gerrymander. And PA is the second-largest swing state in presidential elections, with 21 electoral votes.
Please help Democrat Andy Dinniman. Even if you can't drive out to Chester County (or Upper Providence or Trappe in Montgomery County), you can give him some money.
And please recommend this diary so more people will see it! :-)
Cross-posted at Young Philly Politics.