Primary season is here, and that means Pennsylvanians will flock (or perhaps trickle) to the polls to cast votes in our closed primary system. The Commonwealth's April 23 primary unfortunately falls on Passover this year, potentially impacting Jewish voters. America's two major parties are already looking beyond April, however, to a November general election that is likely to be acrimonious, disappointing, and awash in dark money. Isn't democracy great?
At the top of the ticket are two old men America knows well by now. Both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have already cleared their primary fields, so Democrats and Republicans will have a single option listed at the top of their ballots. For registered Dems hoping to show their lack of support for Biden’s policies in Gaza, however, there's a campaign underway encouraging primary voters to write in "uncommitted."
The U.S. Senate race has also been distilled to its November essence. Pa. Democratic mainstay Bob Casey is hoping for a fourth term. His Republican challenger, Connecticut hedge-fund manager Dave McCormick, never drew a serious opponent. This battle of familiar faces has lacked some of the goofiness of Fetterman vs. Oz, but perhaps that's a good thing.
In the U.S. House, Democratic first-term incumbent Rep. Summer Lee faces primary challenger Bhavini Patel in Pa.-12, while two Republicans, one the heavy favorite, are hoping to unseat first-term incumbent Rep. Chris Deluzio. We have more on these contests and statewide races in this issue's candidate charts.
This relative lack of choices extends down the ballot to the Pa. Senate, where many incumbents are running unopposed. However, Pa. Senate District 45 features a Democratic contest between party favorite Pa. Rep. Nick Pisciottano, whom outgoing Pa. Sen. Jim Brewster has endorsed, and social worker Mackenzie White.
Meanwhile, in the Pa. House, Rep. Joe McAndrew is hoping to retain the District 32 seat he won in a special election to replace the late Rep. Tony DeLuca by fending off a challenge from Penn Hills mayor Pauline Calabrese. Democratic Pa. Rep. Abigail Salisbury, who likewise won her District 34 seat in a special election, faces a stiff challenge from progressive Wilkinsburg school board member and Summer Lee ally Ashley Comans (whom Pittsburgh City Paper interviewed about her family's rise in Wilkinsburg politics).
Lastly, Pa. House District 38, which Pisciottano is departing to pursue his Pa. Senate run, features a three-way contest between Pisciottano's cousin, teacher and local politician John Inglis, whom the state party has endorsed; A.J. Olasz, grandson of a former Pa. Rep. and law clerk who's picked up several prominent endorsements; and policy analyst Victoria Schmotzer, whose father served in the Statehouse. This contest of political insiders could prove decisive — Democrats hold only a narrow edge in registration in the district, so a strong contender in November could be the difference in whether or not Pa. House Dems hold onto their paper-thin majority.
The stakes this year are high. April's winners could have a say in issues including abortion, education funding, fracking, the legalization of recreational weed, and voting rights. City Paper will continue to cover these issues and the candidates discussing them through November — in the meantime, we encourage you to please vote responsibly on April 23! Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. that day, and a recent court case should have cleared the way for mail-in ballots and more dropbox locations in and around Pittsburgh.Read our FULL PRIMARY ELECTION GUIDE here.
