PA-165th candidate Jennifer O'Mara
The Pennsylvania House is currently controlled by a dysfunctional Republican super-majority, who just sunk the possibility of ungerrymandering the legislative maps before the next census and left town before addressing sensible gun regulations. The house includes such Republican luminaries as Rep. Daryl Metcalf. And that’s not even starting on his invitation to white nationalists.
Some of the closest races are in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Here in Delaware County, Republicans run on moderate agendas, but once they get to Harrisburg they vote in line with the party whenever needed. The house districts in Delco are horrendously gerrymandered, nearly every one will require winning in a district drawn to be a safe Republican seat.
The 160th district includes parts of Delaware and Chester counties. Anton Andrew saw off a challenge from local activist Cathy Spahr to win the primary in May. I’ve met Anton a few times, and every time I’ve been impressed by how personable and poised he is. He has an outstanding resume including time as a public defender. He’s a great environmental and gun safety advocate, vastly better than his Trump supporting opponent.
The 161st is currently held by Rep. Leanne Krueger-Braneky. She won a special election in 2015, and has held on by small margins in the two elections since. She’s a strong advocate for metoo legislation, a defender of public education and a relentless thorn in the side of the Republicans. She’s been so annoying to them apparently that the Koch brothers’ organization recently set up an office in her district.
In the 162nd, Dave Delloso is facing an uphill fight in the reddest part of Delco. Dave’s a union leader and a favorite of the local young Dems (albeit a little too grey to count as one). His original opponent was accused of sexual harassment by two women — including a fellow Republican legislator. He’s kept his job, but took his name off the ballot and the Republicans had to mount a write-in campaign. Last I heard Dave was hitting every door regardless of party in Republican territory and working on every single vote.
Attorney and Delco native Mike Zabel is running for the 163rd. Mike is a fun person to hang around, and an outspoken proponent of Democratic causes on social media. Like everyone else on this list, he’s been talking about gun violence, unions, education and tackling the opioid crisis — everything the Republicans have failed to address (or actively made worse) in PA.
Last night I was at a fundraiser for Jennifer O’Mara, another Delco native, in the 165th. Jenn’s a very promising young Democrat with a great future. Last I heard she’d outraised any other Democratic challenger in the state. Jenn’s got a tragic personal story, her father died from a gun suicide, but the support of his union and the strong local schools got her to where she is — running against one of the most vulnerable Republicans. She’s knocked on doors for over a year now, helping win Delco in 2017 and has an incredible work rate.
Finally, we have Kristen Seale in the 168th. Kristen won a contested primary against an establishment Democrat in May. She’s relied on grass-roots support from the Philadelphia chapter of the DSA and local LGBT groups with little support from Democratic donors or the party. She’s stacked up an impressive array of endorsements and has a determined cadre of volunteers supporting her.
And although the PA Senate is (by comparison) more sane, Swarthmore Mayor Tim Kearney is contesting the 26th state Senate seat. Tim Kearney saw off a challenge from a recent arrival to Delco to win his primary in May. He’s worked closely with Rep. Krueger-Braneky in the past and the two are opening a joint office this weekend. Tim’s focused on the issues that keep coming up over and over when you talk to Delco voters — education, gun safety, healthcare.
These don’t represent all the seats in Delco, but the other Democratic incumbents like Brian Kirkland, Margo Davidson and Greg Vitali are unlikely to face close challenges in their dark blue districts.
If you want to help any of these great candidates win back the PA house and senate, you can find their websites above or here’s their donate links — every small donation helps in these local races. Help turn PA blue!
