New 14th Congressional District full of choices
Bob Solomon
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Bibiana Boerio
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Tom Prigg
Adam Sedlock
Guy Reschenthaler
Rep. Rick Saccone
Half the candidates running in the newly created 14th Congressional District won’t see their names on the ballot if they go to their home polling places to vote May 15.
Certainly, candidates who live outside the 14th can write in or type in votes for themselves in the 17th or 18th Districts rather than choosing Conor Lamb, Keith Rothfus, Mike Doyle or the Rev. Dr. Janis Brooks.
Sound confusing? A series of unprecedented events began unfolding last October when Tim Murphy resigned his seat in Congress in the midst of an adultery scandal. At the same time, there was a court case afoot on the fairness of congressional district boundaries. A majority of Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court justices overturned the existing map, labeling it unconstitutional gerrymandering, and drew their own.
Federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, allowed the new congressional district map for Pennsylvania to take effect.
So if you live and vote in Washington, Greene or Fayette counties, or in the western part of Westmoreland County, your congressional district is now No. 14.
Maybe you last voted in the March 13 special election. Large chunks of Washington, Greene, Allegheny and Westmoreland comprise the “old” 18th Congressional District, which U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb represents through the end of this year.
The focus has now shifted to answering the question about who will represent constituents in a two-year term that begins in early January 2019. That’s a process that begins with the May 15 primary election, when Democrats and Republicans nominate, and culminates with voting Nov. 6.
According to the map put in place by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the 18th Congressional District has shifted northward into Allegheny County, where incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle is facing the Rev. Dr. Janis Brooks in their party’s primary.
Don’t look for Lamb’s name on any ballots in the southwesternmost corner of the state. He lives in Mt. Lebanon, which is now part of the 17th Congressional District and includes part of Allegheny County, all of Beaver County and part of Cranberry Township in Butler County. Since Democrat Ray Linsenmayer suspended his campaign, Lamb will be running unopposed, and he and incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Keith Rothfus of Sewickley will be facing off in November.
A candidate does not actually have to live in a district where he or she is running, as long as the candidate meets all legal requirements for holding the office, such as age. Neither Republican candidate, state Rep. Rick Saccone of Elizabeth Township nor state Sen. Guy Reschenthaler of Jefferson Hills, lives within the boundaries of the newly drawn 14th District. They both reside in District 18, where no Republican filed for candidacy.
Reschenthaler said he’s willing to look for a home in the district, and Saccone said a rumor that he had purchased property in Greene County was untrue.
Saccone chose to put all his eggs in the congressional basket this year. He ended a quest to become the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate when he became the candidate chosen by Republicans for the special election to succeed Murphy, which Saccone narrowly lost to Lamb. Neither is Saccone running for a fifth two-year term for a seat in the Pennsylvania House representing the 39th Legislative District.
Reschenthaler is midway through a four-year term representing the 37th District in the state Senate, which includes Peters Township. He tried unsuccessfully to win a Republican mini-convention nomination last November for the special election, finishing second to Saccone.
Both GOP candidates are veterans. Saccone had an 18-year career in the United States Air Force that included service in South Korea. Reschenthaler served in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps with the U.S. Navy in Iraq before winning a magisterial district judgeship in the South Hills.
On the Democratic side, three of the four candidates live in the new 14th Congressional District, with one moving back to Washington County and signing a lease in mid-March.
Bibiana Boerio of Unity Township, Westmoreland County, is a former automobile industry executive who also worked on Capitol Hill as U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak’s chief of staff. She is making her first run for public office. Women have run for Congress in this area before, but only men have been elected.
Psychologist Adam Sedlock of Wharton Township, Fayette County, ran two write-in campaigns for Congress in 2016, first trying to secure a Democratic nomination in a primary where no Democrat had filed, and then in the general election against incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster.
Tom Prigg, a former Taylorstown resident, 1988 graduate of Trinity High School and veteran of the U.S. Army, recently moved from Allegheny County to Canonsburg.
While residing in McCandless Township, he intended to seek the Democratic nomination in what was then the 12th Congressional District, even winning an endorsement from his party in Cambria County. But that was before the boundaries shifted.
A check with the state’s voter registration database showed Prigg among recent “recisions” because he had moved, and the Washington County elections office was in the process of placing Prigg’s and others’ updated information on the voting rolls. As of Friday afternoon, however, his name was appearing on the ballot as an Allegheny County residence.
Rounding out the Democratic field is Dr. Robert Solomon, who made an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination for the special election last November at Washington High School, when Lamb knocked him and five others out of the race.
Solomon, an emergency medicine doctor for 33 years, lives in Oakdale, North Fayette Township, Allegheny County, which is part of the 17th Congressional District. He was at Canonsburg and West Penn Hospital, part of the Allegheny Health Network, from 2012 to 2014, followed by UPMC-St. Margaret and Wheeling (W.Va.) Hospital.
The candidates were emailed a question, “What do you see as the single most pressing issue in your district and what is your legislative solution?” They were given a 150-word limit.
Here are their emailed responses:
DEMOCRATS
Bibiana Boerio
The single most pressing issue is getting our regional economy back on track. I see a combination of legislative efforts to fix the root cause.
Near-term, we need infrastructure projects to replace and restore our aging roads, bridges, locks, water and gas lines. We also need broadband access throughout the region. Improved Community Development Block Grant funding can also help renew our aged downtown areas. These actions are win-win-win. We get good jobs, we strengthen the foundations of our economy, and we provide better quality of life for working families.
And that’s just the start. As I talk with business owners, I keep hearing they have jobs they can’t fill. Either applicants can’t pass drug tests or don’t have the skills. That leads me to priorities two and three which I can’t cover in 150 words! Better health care and education also will help get our economy moving.
Tom Prigg
Economic Development: Only Allegheny County bounced back from the collapse of the steel industry. Much of that county has enjoyed an economic renaissance. It happened because Pittsburgh has great economic infrastructure. The rest of Southwestern Pennsylvania does not.
This is what we need to reproduce. Change the rules of subsidies so the poorer an area maybe the larger the subsidy award. This will monetarily incentivize new businesses to move into the places we need them the most. Invest in infrastructure projects to improve downtown areas for existing and new businesses. Award grant money instead of loans as seed money for people with good ideas and a strong work ethic. Stipend trade schools so people can pay their bills while attending. There is no silver bullet to improve the economy. We need many solutions to build an economy that will benefit local communities rather than wealthy corporations.
Adam Sedlock
The critical issues before the Pennsylvania 14th involve Social Security, Medicare/Medicaid and jobs.
We have all paid into the Social Security program and we all deserve its benefits. We must protect this common bank account. Medicare and Medicaid should be expanded to help provide for all those in need of health care.
Pennsylvania was once a leading state for industry. We should insure affordable training for our citizens already in the workforce and ease transitions into a more innovative economy. With a focus on clean and renewable energy, we can once again become a leader in manufacturing and production of resources. We can all agree that our infrastructure is suffering. I believe we can rebuild our roads, bridges, and schools while hiring locally, improving our communities and economy.
Finally, we must protect our Constitution from attack by forces both domestic and foreign to ensure democracy for future generations.
Robert C. Solomon
Voters consistently name health care as the number one issue, specifically, reforming the way we finance health care. We must build a system that covers everyone by eliminating the wastefulness of a profit-driven health insurance industry that serves few of us well and some of us not at all. Many are skeptical of a government-run system of administering payments for health care. But the Medicare system works very efficiently, spending a much higher proportion of every dollar on health care, not wasting money on profit, lavish executive compensation, marketing and excessive administrative costs. An efficient system of administering payment for health care services will save enough money to provide high-quality health care for all, including nearly 30 million Americans who currently have no coverage, and many more whose current coverage saddles them with exorbitant premiums, deductibles and co-payments. We can make the system better for everyone at lower cost.
REPUBLICANS
Guy Reschenthaler
In my travels on the campaign trail, the issue that comes up with most is jobs. The hardworking people of Southwestern Pennsylvania want to work, and they want a working future for their children and grandchildren. We need less government to grow the economy and create jobs and that is exactly what I will do if elected to Congress. I have a strong record in the state Senate of fighting job-killing regulations and stopping massive tax hikes. In Congress, I will vote to make the recent tax cuts permanent and I will work to eliminate regulations that don’t make sense and kill jobs.
Rick Saccone
Infrastructure improvements are vital to our future. If we continue to make improvements to area roads and bridges, we can create more jobs and build stronger communities. Southwestern Pennsylvania is the epicenter of the Marcellus Shale industry, putting money into our communities where individuals are coming from many states to work the mines, oil, and gas wells.
This tax revenue helps to rebuild our current infrastructure and further strengthens our local economy. However, we still have much work to do. Towns along our once-active rivers are now shells of what they once were. Our system of waterways is in need of repair. Additionally, a devastating opioid epidemic is ravaging our communities and is affecting us all. I know the toll that this epidemic has put on our families, communities, and emergency responders, and I will continue to be a leader in the effort to combat this crisis.
Democrats
Name: Bibiana Boerio
Age: 64
Residence: Unity Township, Westmoreland County
Education: Bachelor of Science, Seton Hill College; University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Business
Occupation: Retired from as Ford Motor Co. as managing director of Jaguar Cars, Ltd.; former chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak in Washington, D.C.
Name: Tom Prigg
Age: 47
Residence: Canonsburg
Education: Bachelor of science, neural psychology and sociology, University of Pittsburgh; graduate certificate in emergency management and public health preparedness, University of Pittsburgh
Occupation: Research associate at Carnegie Mellon University
Name: Adam Sedlock
Age: 64
Residence: Wharton Township, Fayette County
Education: Master’s degree in psychology, California University of Pennsylvania; continuing education.
Occupation: Licensed psychologist in private practice and on staff at three hospitals.
Name: Robert C. Solomon
Age: 60
Residence: North Fayette Township, Allegheny County
Education: Bachelor of arts degree, Temple University; M.D. degree, University of Pittsburgh
Occupation: Emergency medicine physician
Republicans
Name: Guy Reschenthaler
Age: 35
Residence: Jefferson Hills, Allegheny County
Education: Graduate of Penn State, Behrend College, and Duquesne University Law School.
Occupation: State senator, 37th District
Name: Rick Saccone
Age: 60
Residence: Elizabeth Township, Allegheny County
Education: Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh; MS Naval Postgraduate School; Master’s degree in public administration, University of Oklahoma; BS Weber State College
Occupation: State legislator, 39th District