tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481330.post114799601453495107..comments2023-10-24T11:05:25.288-04:00Comments on Mark Rauterkus & Running Mates ponder current events: Fast Ed on KBN: "She clocked everybody."Mark Rauterkushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17157914569686528007noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481330.post-1147996646461323962006-05-18T19:57:00.000-04:002006-05-18T19:57:00.000-04:00Voters start a seismic shift in Pa.Reform will be ...<I>Voters start a seismic shift in Pa.<BR/><BR/>Reform will be easier and incumbents can expect a fight in Nov., experts<BR/>say.<BR/><BR/>By Mario F. Cattabiani and Amy Worden<BR/><BR/>Inquirer Harrisburg Bureau<BR/><BR/>Moments after forcing back tears in his concession speech, State Sen. Robert<BR/>C. Jubelirer, the longest serving president pro tempore in Pennsylvania<BR/>history, described Tuesday's primary election results as "a dramatic<BR/>earthquake."<BR/><BR/>Now, everyone in Harrisburg is wondering: What are the aftershocks?<BR/><BR/>Two things are clear: Many surviving incumbents will have tough races in the<BR/>general election, and the long-stalled legislative reform agenda might well<BR/>be infused with new life.<BR/><BR/>Jubelirer, his No. 2 in the Senate GOP leadership, Majority Leader David J.<BR/>Brightbill, and 15 sitting House members - all targets of anti-pay raise<BR/>anger - lost reelection bids to challengers from within their own party.<BR/><BR/>Of the 17 incumbents who lost, according to unofficial results, all but two<BR/>voted for the raises on July 7.<BR/><BR/>In a typical election year, two incumbents lose in the primary. The turnover<BR/>in this primary is the largest in at least 32 years. And, with 30<BR/>retirements, there could be more than 50 new lawmakers in the General<BR/>Assembly at the start of the new term in January.<BR/><BR/>The high number of incumbents knocked out is clear evidence, experts said,<BR/>that voters want change in the way business is done in Harrisburg.<BR/><BR/>"For the first time, reformers can really talk about such things as a<BR/>constitutional convention, term limits and reducing the size of the<BR/>legislature," said Mike Young, a political analyst and retired Pennsylvania<BR/>State University professor. "Before, they were fantasies. Now, they are<BR/>entering the realm of political possibilities."<BR/><BR/>Barry Kauffman, executive director of Common Cause of Pennsylvania, a<BR/>government watchdog group, pointed to the victory speeches as an indication<BR/>reform is on the minds of the winners.<BR/><BR/>"Almost every candidate talked about cleaning up Harrisburg and about<BR/>transparency in government," he said. "They don't want to see things done<BR/>behind closed doors any more."<BR/><BR/>Seven of those who upset incumbents were backed by PACleanSweep, the<BR/>anti-pay raise group that recruited candidates to run for the legislature.<BR/><BR/>Jerry Kelley, the group's spokesman, said: "I think it's a new day in<BR/>Pennsylvania. This awakened folks.<BR/><BR/>"The pay raise is certainly the lightening rod and the galvanizing force<BR/>behind the anger, but I think it goes deeper than that. I think it's a<BR/>general dissatisfaction with lawmakers, and not just their salaries, but all<BR/>the perks that come with their office."<BR/><BR/>Although four of their own fell Tuesday night, Democrats were buoyant about<BR/>the results. Voters were clearly targeting incumbent Republicans - tossing<BR/>13 from office, they said.<BR/><BR/>"When Republican voters oust their own at this rate, it's more than just<BR/>anti-incumbency," said Rep. T.J. Rooney (D., Northampton), the state<BR/>Democratic Party chairman. "It's a paltry record of accomplishments coupled<BR/>by resentment for not getting things done when they had the power to do so."<BR/><BR/>Republican Party officials admitted the party took a hit from voter anger,<BR/>but said that anger was evident on the Democratic side, too.<BR/><BR/>"What we saw last night was voters were upset on both sides," said Scott<BR/>Migli, executive director of the Pennsylvania GOP. But, looking ahead to<BR/>November, he said, "we will unite as a Republican Party."<BR/><BR/>Gov. Rendell said Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll's runaway victory over<BR/>three opponents in the Democratic primary for that office proved an absence<BR/>of anti-incumbency sentiment in that race.<BR/><BR/>"Look at Catherine Baker Knoll," Rendell said at a stop in Bethlehem, Pa.,<BR/>yesterday. "She clocked everybody."<BR/><BR/>Most of the GOP members who were picked off come from conservative areas of<BR/>the state and Democrats are unlikely to pick up many of those seats in<BR/>November.<BR/><BR/>But Democrats, who have been in the minority for more than a decade in both<BR/>chambers, could chip away at the GOP majority. Republicans control the<BR/>House, 109-94, and the Senate, 29-21.<BR/><BR/>At the very least, the election results will bring about a scramble for<BR/>leadership posts in the Senate after the November election. It's unclear at<BR/>this point who the leading candidates are to replace Jubelirer and<BR/>Brightbill, officials said.<BR/><BR/>Sen. Jeffrey Piccola of Dauphin County, who as majority whip is the highest<BR/>ranking Republican leader left in that chamber, positioned himself as a<BR/>voice for change.<BR/><BR/>Piccola issued a news release yesterday saying that government reform -<BR/>including passage of a lobbyist disclosure law - must be a Republican<BR/>priority.<BR/><BR/>"The Republican Party must earn again the reputation as the party of good<BR/>government," he said. "A legitimate government needs a legitimate and strong<BR/>lobbying reporting law. Other crucial reforms of the legislative, executive,<BR/>and judicial branches must follow."<BR/><BR/>Some say the shake-up will bring uncertainty to the Senate in the short run<BR/>and more partisanship over the long term, with hard-line conservatives<BR/>gaining a greater voice in the process.<BR/><BR/>There will be "a period of substantial uncertainty, both for the agenda and<BR/>who manages that agenda," said Stephen MacNett, chief counsel to Senate<BR/>Republicans.<BR/><BR/>The election results also gave a green light for Republican gubernatorial<BR/>hopeful Lynn Swann to attack Gov. Rendell on the pay-raise issue, said<BR/>Young.<BR/><BR/>"So far, Rendell has been the Teflon candidate on this issue," Young said.<BR/>"It just hasn't seemed to affect him. The opportunity is clearly there for<BR/>Swann to go after Rendell."<BR/><BR/>At a campaign stop in Philadelphia yesterday, Swann did just that, urging<BR/>voters to hold Rendell responsible for the pay raise.<BR/><BR/>"He offered the pay raise... . He signed it," Swann said.<BR/><BR/>Some observers say the primary results are indication that Republican voters<BR/>may be looking for more conservative representation in the General Assembly,<BR/>while Democrats counter that the results show Republicans are more at risk<BR/>in November.<BR/><BR/>But others say the primary race was less about partisan politics than it was<BR/>a referendum on the status quo.<BR/><BR/>"It was not Democrat vs. Republican or conservative vs. liberal," said<BR/>Matthew Brouillette, president of the conservative Commonwealth Foundation.<BR/>"It was us against them."<BR/><BR/>Voted Out<BR/><BR/>Republicans control the House, 109-94, and the Senate, 29-21.<BR/><BR/>Sixty-one legislative incumbents were in contested primaries on Tuesday. At<BR/>least 17 were defeated, and several races were too close to call.<BR/><BR/>Voters also chose Republican and Democratic nominees to compete for 30 open<BR/>seats resulting from incumbent retirements.<BR/><BR/>Members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly who lost their primary<BR/>election, according to unofficial results:<BR/><BR/>Senate:<BR/><BR/>. David J. Brightbill (R., Lebanon), majority leader<BR/><BR/>. Robert C. Jubelirer (R., Blair), president pro tempore<BR/><BR/>House:<BR/><BR/>. Bob Allen (R., Berks)<BR/><BR/>. Gibson C. Armstrong (R., Lancaster)<BR/><BR/>. Roy E. Baldwin (R., Lancaster)<BR/><BR/>. Fred Belardi (D., Lackawanna)<BR/><BR/>. Susan Cornell (R., Montgomery)<BR/><BR/>. Patrick Fleagle (R., Franklin)<BR/><BR/>. Teresa Forcier (R., Crawford)<BR/><BR/>. Frank LaGrotta (D., Beaver)<BR/><BR/>. Dennis E. Leh (R., Berks)<BR/><BR/>. Stephen R. Maitland (R., Adams)<BR/><BR/>. Frank J. Pistella (D., Allegheny)<BR/><BR/>. Kenneth W. Ruffing (D., Allegheny)<BR/><BR/>. Paul W. Semmel (R., Lehigh)<BR/><BR/>. Thomas L. Stevenson (R., Allegheny)<BR/><BR/>. Peter J. Zug (R., Lebanon)<BR/><BR/>SOURCE: Inquirer, Associated Press<BR/></I>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com