Race To Replace Murtha Will Be Highly Competitive

CQ Politics :

Rep. John P. Murtha 's death Monday has undoubtedly left a huge void in the Pennsylvania delegation and the Democratic Caucus, but it also sets up a competitive special election contest that both parties will heavily target.

The 12th district is politically competitive, to say the least. The southwestern Pennsylvania district voted by a small margin for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in the 2008 presidential race, and often elects Republicans to local office. Murtha, meanwhile, has always won re-election by convincing margins. In 2008, he won by 20 points despite a last-minute gaffe about his own district on the campaign trail in the waning days before the election.

Read the whole story: CQ Politics

Comments

[drudgeman1]

12:46 PM on 02/11/2010

Lynn Swann would be a great replacement for this joke of a congressman!!!

[mmille732003]

04:49 PM on 02/10/2010

Tea partyers have a really low approval rating no matter where they show up, like root canal. Where were they during the disasterous Bush era?

[grovestand12]

03:38 PM on 02/10/2010

Murtha even said that his district is filled with uneducated, redneck racist types. The tea party will be all over this one and a fierce battle waged for this seat.

[mmille732003]

01:28 PM on 02/10/2010

No it won't;more MSM spin;dems will keep Murtha's seat hands down

[ohiodem250]

12:23 PM on 02/10/2010

An anti-tax group in my city made the news this morning for the disgusting nature of their tweets last night about the passing of John Murtha. As evidenced by a few of the conservative posters here, it must run in the political family. Sad.

http://cincinnati.com/blogs/politics/2010/02/09/coast-murtha-tweet-draws-fire/

[bygollymissmolly]

11:55 AM on 02/10/2010

Murtha was well loved for the pork he brought home to his district. The people will undoubtedly vote for whomever they think will carry on in Murtha's tradition to continue to bring home the pork.

[tacevad]

11:34 AM on 02/10/2010

This will tell us if the DNC has learned anything recently.

[mimigrammy]

11:34 AM on 02/10/2010

I don't see the good people of Pennsylvania handling this the way the good people of Massachusetts did.

[bygollymissmolly]

11:56 AM on 02/10/2010

You mean by all the progressives and independents leaning liberal staying home and not voting. Their voter turnout was pathetic. Only 40% of their electorate even voted. Here in Oregon, with two small initiatives on the ballot, had over 60% turnout. But, that may be because we vote by mail.

[SwingingFromCenter]

12:11 PM on 02/10/2010

Yeah, it's a lot easier to vote when all you have to do is drop something in the box.

[SwingingFromCenter]

12:12 PM on 02/10/2010

BTW, those weren't two "small" initiatives. One was a huge one about taxing corporations (which was good) and another was just another attempt to make the rich pay more than their fair share because they're a minority and easy to pick on in elections (which shouldn't have passed)

[RetiredArmy04]

11:25 AM on 02/10/2010

Murtha was a political criminal in his pork dealings and an embarrassment to the Marine Corps with his accusations of war crimes. Hopefully this district will go Republican.

[Dbos]

03:14 PM on 02/10/2010

Decorated disabled vet ,not a disgrace. You?

[RetiredArmy04]

12:24 PM on 02/11/2010

So he served from 66-67 in Nam. He was a staff officer and probably stubbed his toe getting the Generals coffee a few times to get his Purple Hearts. If you only knew how bogus the awards system is in the military, its a joke. Bronze Stars are handed out like MRE's to officers. People in the Military during my time served 4-5 tours in combat so don't question my service. His actions as a Congressman on the other hand are about as criminal as you can get. Have you done any research on the man? Do some, it may open your eyes.

[OneConservative]

10:54 AM on 02/10/2010

This should go Republican. I will need to change projections as this will make it 52 House seats that I have Republicans winning.

[drudgeman1]

12:46 PM on 02/11/2010

Lynn Swann for Congress!!!

[dizmo4]

10:07 AM on 02/10/2010

Murtha represented the only district that voted FOR Kerry in 2004 and FOR McCain in 2008.

[PATina]

10:34 AM on 02/10/2010

Which makes what he said about his district less of a gaffe...

It will defintely be an interesting race to watch.

[freemarketcapitalism]

10:03 AM on 02/10/2010

Republican pick-up.