Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz's entrance to the race for Governor of Pennsylvania has left the heavily-Democratic 13th Congressional District of Pennsylvania without an incumbent seeking re-election.
To the best of my knowledge, at least four Democrats already have entered the race to succeed Schwartz, and it looks like it's already shaping up to be a pivotal battle for the heart and soul of the Democratic Party.
Let's go back in time to 1994 for a second. The Republican-leaning 13th District is represented by Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky, a moderate Democrat who promised to oppose any legislation that would increase federal gas taxes in her 1992 congressional campaign. After Vice President Al Gore cast a tie-breaking vote in favor of President Bill Clinton's budget, which included a federal gas tax increase, Margolies-Mezvinsky was the deciding vote in the U.S. House of Representatives that sent the budget to then-President Bill Clinton's desk. Republicans promised to make Margolies-Mezvinsky a one-term congresswoman, and they delivered on that promise.
Now, let's go back to 2013. Marjorie Margolies, as she is now known as, is now running for her old seat in Congress, now a Democratic-leaning one. Margolies's son, Mark Mezvinsky, is the husband of Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of former President Bill Clinton. Margolies's connections to the Clintons will likely provide her with a mountain of campaign cash.
Marjorie has some serious competition, though.
Brendan Boyle, a state representative from Northeast Philadelphia, also has big money connections of his own, as he is the chairman of the campaign arm for the state house Democrats in Pennsylvania. Valorie Arkoosh, on the other hand, won an online poll conducted by the Pennsylvania political website PoliticsPA.
However, Marjorie's strongest challenger appears to be Daylin Leach, a state senator who is regarded as Pennsylvania's liberal lion. Leach has supported legalizing and regulating marijuana, labeling food products that contain GMOs, and is a staunch supporter of LGBT rights. The United Auto Workers are backing Leach, and they have praised his commitment to protecting Pennsylvania's middle class.
I am calling for the DailyKos community, as well as the rest of the netroots, to coalesce behind Leach, as it is time for the Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party to ensure that Marjorie Margolies remains a one-term congresswoman!