Gerlach Exits PA GOV Race, Undecided On House Race
By Tim Sahd
Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-PA) withdrew from the PA GOV race this afternoon, but did not say whether he'll seek to retain his southeastern PA seat in Congress. "At this point," Gerlach spokesperson Kori Walter told PoliticsPA, "Jim has said he has not ruled anything in or out."
Several GOPers and Dem candidates have already begun raising boatloads of cash for what's expected to be a hotly competitive race in the marginal CD. In '08, Pres. Obama took 58%, but Gerlach has held the seat since its creation in '02.
Businessman Steven Welch (R) -- who had already put more than $500K of his own cash into the race -- and state Rep. Curt Schroder (R) head the list of GOPers in the contest. Three Dems were also competing, including physician Manan Trivedi (D) and ex-Philly Inquirer columnist Doug Pike (D). Trivedi had $121K in the bank at the end of the 3rdQ, while Pike has given his camp. over $600K for the contest.
Dems were confident they'd compete in the CD whether Gerlach runs for re-election or not. "Democrats have a strong slate of candidates in the district who are committed to turning the page on the George Bush economic agenda that Republicans like Jim Gerlach have come to epitomize," DCCC spokesperson Shripal Shah wrote in a statement. "The suspension of his gubernatorial campaign doesn't change our focus moving forward."
In the GOV race, Gerlach's move clears the way for AG Tom Corbett (R) to claim the GOP nod. Gerlach had been the underdog in the race to the two-term AG, and had trouble gaining traction. In the last Quinnipiac Univ. poll, conducted in mid-Dec., Corbett led Gerlach 38-12%. State Rep. Samuel Rohrer (R) remains in the contest, but Corbett has the clear edge in the primary.
Gerlach cited the difficulties in raising a large amount of money as the reason for his withdrawal. "While we have successfully raised over $1 million, traveled thousands of miles all across this Commonwealth and signed up more than 19,000 supporters eager to help us win, today's media-driven campaigns require four times that amount to wage a successful primary," Gerlach wrote in a statement. "That left me with two choices: either spend all of my time raising money with little time left for meeting with voters; or withdrawing my candidacy and working even harder to serve the public. I am choosing to serve the public.
It is likely that the GOP will lose some seats in the 2010 races. Even in the GOP sweep in 1994, when the party picked up a net 54 seats, Democrats won 4 GOP-held seats.
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