Below are some of my thoughts on local races including some links to resources. As always I encourage folks to do their own due diligence. I’m an active member of the local Republican party however I do not pull levers based on party alone and encourage others not to as well. This has gotten me in trouble in the past with former party leaders. I believe strongly in voting for the best candidate for the job. Most times for me that is a Republican but I have supported Democrats before who were better candidates.
Here is a run-down of local races of interest and my thoughts:
Governor of Pennsylvania I will be reluctantly voting for Tom Corbett on Tuesday. This is based on Corbett’s pattern of inaction on issues I care about. I would have seriously considered a moderate or Blue Dog Democrat. Tom Wolf is not that. Corbett has been an ineffective leader. This includes liquor store privatization and pension reform. These are issues where Corbett had the support of a Legislative majority and most Pennsylvanians but failed to get things done.
Inaction on other issues where Corbett has expressed support but again no action for include Rideshar – Uber/Lyft.
Lastly, Corbett has been completely against a severance tax while many other moderate Republicans have started to consider one. Personally, I support more revenue from drillers in line with other states but not as another band-aid in the same vein as gambling or other gimmicks to raise revenue as an alternative to fixing fundamental underlying problems.
Again, I am for more revenue on drillers in line with other states but that money should be returned to the communities impacted. Not thrown into the general fund. I’d also be ok with using the money to fund new infrastructure. This could set Pennsylvania up for the next great energy boom which should be an advanced clean green energy initiative. The money should be used for something forward thinking. Use our nat gas strength to further diversify our state economy as a green energy leader. Point is, let’s initiate a severance tax but use that money to make investments and help the communities impacted and advance PA’s economy not feed a pig funding a broken and unsustainable pension system. The pension issue has to be addressed for the fiscal health of the state. And we also owe it to teachers to make sure they are taken care of for the long run 10-20 years down the line. Wolf doesn’t even acknowledge the problem.
One last thing I’ll mention that I was very critical of was one aspect of Act 13 that would have allowed drillers to circumvent local zoning laws which was championed by Corbett. Thankfully this was overturned by the courts. My friend Scott covered this issue on his blog.
Bottom line for me is I am not excited about either candidate. However, as a centrist I see Wolf as being a little too far left for my comfort. It also boils down to pension reform. Wolf exhibits total ignorance of the problem and that frightens me. End of the day I have go with the ineffective leader who at least acknowledges the problem even though he hasn’t been a leader on the issue.
No confidence: Neither Wolf nor Corbett has earned our support
PA Senate
I am an enthusiastic supporter of Sen. Pat Browne who enjoys broad bi-partisan support and should win the race by a large margin esp in the suburbs. I expect him to get 60+% or more of the vote in Lower Macungie.
As a smart growth advocate Senator Browne’s innovative and groundbreaking NIZ was the catalyst for revitalization in the city. Fundamentally it allowed Allentown to keep state money local to jump start re-development. (when to use ABC tax gimmicks the “but for” test) The NIZ is successful because it’s so much more than just the arena and that is the beauty and key of its current and future success. Yes, the arena is the anchor but the success of the project is because it’s grounded in great land use planning and smart growth urbanism. It’s a true mixed use city core featuring a robust mix of office-space, commercial including retail, residential and entertainment.
Beyond the NIZ success the Senator has broad bi-partisan support in education which is a key issue for Pa voters including earning the endorsement of the education voters action fund.
I will mention I was very disappointed with Brownes vote on HB1565 which eliminated important protections for streams. I still support him. That’s the way it is with members of the State House or really any politician. They vote on 100’s of bills a year. No one is going to match up with your views 100% of the time. Be wary of people who tell you what you want to hear 100% of the time. We have to get over that mentality as a voting public. Though discouraged by that one vote I believe in looking at a legislators entire body of work. Over the years Senator Browne has been one of the best legislators in the state house.
PA House 134th
I will be voting for Ryan Mackenzie. He is running unopposed. But it’s likely I would have supported him even if he had a challenger. I got flack from former party leaders for supporting my friend Pat Slattery when the 134th was wide open. At that time Mackenzie for me was an unknown. Over the last couple years as I’ve gotten to know him as a legislator he’s earned my vote. Again, I don’t agree with him 100% of the time but I respect that he things through his votes. A key vote he made this past year was voting against the gas tax. This is another issue where instead of fixing underlying problems with how we fund our highways and bridges we instead just seek more and more revenue.
US Congress
I will be voting for Congressman Dent. We have in Dent one of the best Congressman in the nation. I’m a proud supporter.
Other races of interest:
PA house 183rd (Where is the 183rd district.)
I support Independent candidate Michael Molovinsky. Republican Julie Harhart has held the seat for 20 years. This is far too long. Molovinsky represents an independent voice of which we need more in Harrisburg. In a recent Morning Call article the author wrote that Molovinsky clearly “Stood Out,” in the debate but referred to him as a “long shot” because he’s an Independent. We have to get over this notion that you cannot win without party support. Competition is good. I am a Republican and typically work to support Republican candidates but I still believe it’s important to have strong 3rd party or independent candidates. Molovisnky is a strong candidate and as one person wrote in a recent LTE a “tenacious advocate of the people“. I think he will do surprisingly well and has a shot at making some waves. That all depends on the voters. Will they move beyond pulling levels based on the R or D behind it? Molovinsky is clearly the best candidate for the job in the 183rd. But will people just write him off because he doesn’t have an R or D on his jersey?
131st
Michael Beyer vs. Incumbent Justin Simmons. I don’t have a strong opinion here and that is mainly because down the home stretch this race got extremely negative and personal including two ridiculous facebook pages filled with nonsense, hyper partisanship and fear mongering. Real turn off for me. I will say I think Justin Simmons performed better in the debates and I do respect that Simmons claims he will decline his public pension and also declines many per diems and other perks of office. For this race I’ll leave you with a link to the debate and encourage you to watch it and make your decisions based on the issues. Not the mudslinging, sniping or personal attacks. Beyer campaign gets ugly in waning hours.