News & Brews February 14, 2024
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Democrat wins special Pa. House election
Surprising no one given the makeup of the district, Democrat Jim Prokopiak defeated Republican Candace Cabanas in yesterday’s speical House election in the 140th District in Bucks County. According to unofficial results, Prokopiak garnered nearly 68% of the vote. This brings the Democrat majority to 102-100, with one seat vacant following the resignation on Friday of Republican Rep. Joe Adams.
Republican hoping to challenge McCormick fails to make ballot
The Delaware Valley Journal reports, “Conestoga Township’s Brandi Tomasetti wants to challenge GOP favorite David McCormick in the U.S. Senate primary. She just has to figure out how to get on the ballot first. When filing closed at 5 p.m. Tuesday, McCormick had met the qualifications to appear on the April 23 primary ballot. But Tomasetti, the secretary-treasurer of Conestoga Township, had not.” She said there was a “minor issue” with her petitions, and she plans to file an appeal.
Pa. nonprofit voter group boosts Democrats
Broad + Liberty’s Todd Shepherd investigates how the Voter Project, which began as a project of the leftist Harrisburg-based Keystone Research Center, is donating “to Democratic-aligned political action committees, further undercutting the organization’s own claims it is nonpartisan.” For example, the Voter Project gave $35,000 to Agenda PAC, a progressive PAC that’s backed U.S. Sen. John Fetterman as well as Democrat school board candidates.
Trailblazer and Trendsetter: Pastor Josh Robertson
In its second Black History Month Trailblazers and Trendsetters series, which recognizes “leaders and advocates in central Pa. working to uplift their communities through their work, businesses, arts, ministries and mentorships,” PennLive profiles Pastor Josh Robertson for his educational leadership. “Robertson, founder of The Rock Church in uptown Harrisburg, is living proof that a one-size-fits-all approach to education doesn’t fit all kids. And that if it doesn’t fit you, it can have devastating consequences….”
With filing deadline, Pa. primary races take shape
ABC27 reports that more than 40 candidates filed to run for Congress in Pa. (all 17 seats are up for election this year); more than 40 candidates filed to run for state Senate (where 25 out of 50 seats are up for election), and more than 300 filed to run for state House (where all 203 seats are up). Also on the ballot are key races for attorney general, auditor general, treasurer, and, of course, president. The Inquirer takes a look at who’s running for the first of these, widely considered a key post (and stepping stone) in Pa. To get on the primary ballot, Democrat and Republican candidates must collect a certain minimum number of signatures from voters, with the number varying based on the office sought. Independent and third-party candidates, meanwhile, don’t appear on primary ballots and instead have until August 1 to collect signatures to appear on the November ballot.