State, US Races Shape Up for November

With just one race in the national spotlight—the Democratic US Senate contest in which challenger Joe Sestak defeated incumbent Arlen Specter—primary election day in Pennsylvania passed without much fanfare.

There were several contested primaries in the US House of Representatives, particularly on the Republican side. Already on the national radar for the November general election are the races in Pennsylvania’s third (Erie), fourth (Allegheny), sixth (Berks), eighth (Bucks), 11th (Luzerne), 13th (Lackawanna), and 17th (Dauphin and Schuylkill) congressional districts.

The seventh district in Delaware County is the only open seat. In the12th district, the seat left empty by the death of Rep. John Murtha will be filled by longtime aide Mark Critz until November, when he will take on his Republican challenger Tim Burns once again. Only one Pennsylvania incumbent in the US House is running unopposed.

In state legislative races the highest profile contests will be found in the southeast, at least for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Democrats hold a majority of 104-98, but that could be in jeopardy if Republicans have quality candidates in the right districts. The Republican Senate majority of 30-20 appears safe. The most attention will be focused on the open seat races in Lackawanna, Luzerne and Washington counties.

There will be, perhaps, classic confrontations at the top of the ballot in the US Senate and gubernatorial races.

Pennsylvania is viewed by many as a “swing” state, with a large Democratic registration edge in an election year that is thought to favor Republicans. The Tom Corbett (R) vs. Dan Onorato (D) battle for governor and the Sestak (D) vs. Toomey (R) race for the US Senate could be quite close on Nov. 2.