Following primary, focus shifts to state Legislature open seat races

State Rep. Margo Davidson fended off a close Democratic primary challenge Tuesday, advancing to a general election race that likely will be much less competitive.

Davidson, a two-term incumbent in the 164th Legislative District, took about 52 percent of the vote. Her top challenger, attorney Billy Smith, grabbed about 42 percent. Dafan Zhang, an adjunct professor, gained about 5 percent.

That was the closest an incumbent state lawmaker from Delco came to losing a primary since former state Rep. Steve Freind defeated challenger Ellen Fisher by just 6 percentage points in the 1990 Republican primary for the 166th District.

Yet, Davidson can breathe a bit easier this morning.

She will face Republican Saud Siddiqui in the general election,  but the 164th District is considered a safe Democratic seat, thanks to redistricting efforts that added Lansdowne and parts of Yeadon. Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by a 3-to-1 margin.

With the hotly-contested 164th primary over, much of the local political focus will shift to a pair of open seat races for the state Legislature.

The race for the 26th Senatorial District figures to be one of the most prominent in the state. It is one of six open seat races in the Senate, where Republicans hold a 27-23 majority.

Republicans clearly view the 26th District as critical. Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-9, was amid a group of several Republicans who donated to the campaign of GOP candidate Tom McGarrigle. Pileggi contributed $100,000 — nearly a sixth of McGarrigle’s funding. Retiring incumbent Sen. Ted Erickson gave McGarrigle $25,400.

McGarrigle, the chairman of Delaware County Council, is being opposed by Democrat John Kane, the business manager for Plumbers Local 690. Kane mostly has received his campaign funding from unions.

At the May 5 filing deadline, McGarrigle had $558,266 cash in hand compared to Kane’s $360,716.

The other open seat that will receive local attention is the 163rd Legislative District, where Democrat Vince Rongione and Republican Jamie Santora are vying to replace retiring state Rep. Nicholas Micozzie, a Republican.

The state House is expected to maintain its Republican majority.

Rongione and Santora nearly have an equal amount of campaign funding. Rongione gained $74,091 in campaign funds during the first four months of the year while Santora raised $73,122.

ICYMI: A recap of 164th District Coverage

In advance of tomorrow’s primary election, here’s a recap of our recent coverage on the 164th Legislative Race and other political news.

In today’s paper, we broke down the stances taken by the candidates in the 164th District primary and provided an overview of the primary ballot, which is headed by the Democratic gubernatorial race.

On Sunday, we examined the rarity of state legislators losing in the primary. No state legislator representing Delco has fallen in the primary since before 1980, but that could change Tuesday. We asked a few political science professors to break down the 164th District primary, where Margo Davidson could be upset by a challenger.

Last week, we covered the 164th District forum hosted by the League of Women’s Voters. We also broke down the campaign finance reports of each candidate — most of the money is being used to fund various mailers. Vince Sullivan took a look at the campaign finance reports submitted by the candidates in the 26th Senatorial District and the 163rd Legislative District — two open seat races.

Davidson also hosted a pair of recent press conferences. Two weeks ago, she urged the General Assembly not to cut funding for early education programs. Last week, she announced plans to build a hotel at the site of the former Sears building on 69th Street in Upper Darby. Tim Logue covered that.

Elsewhere, Gov. Tom Corbett stopped by Marcus Hook on Saturday, asking voters to come out and vote. Corbett has made five visits to Delaware County since March. Tom Wolf, the frontrunner in the Democratic gubernatorial contest, stopped by Chester earlier this month.

Also, both candidates in the 26th Senatorial District race have opened campaign offices recently. Republican Tom McGarrigle opened his office on Saturday. Democrat John Kane debuted his office earlier this month.

McGarrigle proposes severance tax on natural gas companies

Republican state Senate candidate Tom McGarrigle unveiled his plan to raise state education funding by levying a severance tax on natural gas companies.

McGarrigle said implementing a 4 percent severance tax on natural gas will generate $1.6 billion in new state revenue over the course of two years. The tax would raise $709 million in its first year and another $887 million in its second.

All of the funding would be devoted to public education, McGarrigle said. The revenue also would be required to supplement – not replace – existing education funding sources.

Tom McGarrigle announces his plan to raise education funding by taxing natural gas companies.

“There is broad support from residents across Pennsylvania to create a severance tax on natural gas drilling companies,” McGarrigle said, who also is the chairman of Delaware County Council. “The difference with my plan is the entire 4 percent tax will supplement existing funding for basic education. That means more money being spent in classrooms to educate students.”

McGarrigle, of Springfield, is running against Democrat John Kane, of Ridley Township, for the open seat in the 26th Senatorial District. The seat is being vacated by retiring Republican state Sen. Edwin “Ted” Erickson, of Newtown.

Pennsylvania has the lowest effective tax rate on natural gas drilling companies among 11 states in the region, according to a study released last month by the state’s nonpartisan Independent Fiscal Office. Pennsylvania has not levied a severance tax, but has enacted an impact fee.

McGarrigle’s proposal would maintain the impact fee while also imposing a severance tax on Marcellus Shale drilling companies.

“We don’t want to overtax them and drive them out of Pennsylvania, but they need to pay their fair share,” McGarrigle said.

State Sen. Vincent Hughes, D-7, of Philadelphia, announced last month that he plans to introduce legislation to levy a 5 percent severance tax. His proposal would generate $720 million in its first year and earmark $375 million to education funding.

McGarrigle said he would back any plan that raises education funding by taxing natural gas companies.

“We should get behind good ideas, whether they’re from a Democrat or a Republican,” McGarrigle said. “School districts need more funding to educate these children. Whoever provides it – we should look for good ideas.”

Kane, the business manager of Plumbers Union Local 690, also supports levying an extraction tax on natural gas companies.

“I want to applaud Tom for standing with me and the Senate Democrats on the issue of adequately funding education by proposing a modest tax on natural gas extraction,” Kane said in a statement. “I’m glad that we both can bring support and publicize this idea, which has broad support among Delaware County residents.

“My only hope is that as the campaign progresses, my opponent continues to stand up for the interests of Delaware County instead of the interests of his party.”

Gov. Tom Corbett, a Republican seeking re-election, has opposed implementing a severance tax, arguing it would deter investment.

Transcript to Tom McGarrigle’s campaign announcement

Here is the transcript from Tom McGarrigle’s formal announcement this morning that he is running for state Senate in the 26th District:

“First off, I’d like to welcome and thank everybody for being here on this chilly day. As Andy Reilly said, it’s a little bit warmer in Middletown. That’s because he’s a lawyer and he’s used to being inside. He doesn’t work hard like us working men outside.

“My name is Tom McGarrigle. I am pleased to announce that I am officially a candidate for the Pennsylvania State Senate.

“This service station behind you is the business that me and my wife started from the ground up 33 years ago. I’ll give you a little brief history on where I came from and where I am today.

“I’m one of eight children that grew up with a wonderful mother. I lost my father when my mother was 34 years old. She had the great task of raising eight children with no money. She gave us some very important things that I thank her every day for giving me. She gave us all the ability to work hard and she made us. She taught us to work together as a family unit and always be willing to help others whenever you could. We all do that today. Thank you, mom, for that.

“Those lessons of working hard paid off. At the age of 21, I opened my first automotive repair business in Sharon Hill. It went from Sharon Hill to Collingdale to eventually here in Springfield. I’m very lucky to have two of my three sons involved in my business and my lovely wife. Without her being here, I wouldn’t be doing what I am today. I thank my family and I thank all of my employees who do a wonderful job for me every day.

“Michael (Puppio) thanked Ted Erickson, but I’d also like to take a moment to acknowledge the state Senator. Ted has been a fantastic legislator, a person who earns the respect of every person who has ever met him. He has never let partisanship or party labels get in the way of doing what is right for the residents of the 26th Senatorial District or the state of Pennsylvania. He will be missed and leaves extremely big shoes to fill. Thank you, Ted.

“I never really considered myself a politician. If you ask any of my good friends, I think they’d agree. Most of my life, my passion was building a small business and making the living to support my family.

“Like many other fathers I got involved with my children’s youth sports. Thanks to a gentleman behind me, Rep. (William) Adolph, who put the hook into me, he encouraged me to run for commissioner in Springfield Township, where I worked to address township concerns like public safety, parks, sports fields and other quality of life issues here in Springfield Township. Later, I saw an opportunity to have a broader impact on the county level and was encouraged by local residents to run for Delaware County council.

“In working with my colleagues – who Michael introduced earlier – we’ve done some amazing things in Delaware County. We were able to achieve a number of successes. We saved thousands of local jobs when the two Delaware County refineries were threatened with closure. We made our schools safer for our children and their teachers by launching a program to install a panic button in every school in Delaware County.

“We brought a new state-of-the-art movie and production studio to Delaware County. We worked successfully to bring the Philadelphia Union soccer and PPL Park to Delaware County. We developed a comprehensive, economic plan for the county’s future, which made Delaware County the No. 1 county in southeastern Pennsylvania for job growth.

“We developed a program to help fund open space preservation and to revitalize the communities in the eastern part of the county. Most recently, we have turned our attention to the scourge of heroin addiction. We have formed a heroin task force to address prescription drug abuse and the heroin epidemic that is increasingly affecting our young people and communities.

“I decided to kick my campaign off here because it underscores my strong belief that we need representatives in Harrisburg who understand the challenges families and small businesses face every day. I’ve been a resident of the 26th Senatorial District for almost 40 years. My wife and I were married here (and) raised our kids here. I want this district to provide the same, great opportunities it did for me when I started my business years ago. That is why I am running for the state Senate.

“I will be strong voice for job creation. I know what it takes to create good paying jobs for the working men of our district. I’ve signed the front of a paycheck for over 30 years and know the challenges of keeping a small business afloat and providing good, steady jobs for my employees.

“I will work tirelessly to increase educational opportunities for our children. I know that elementary and secondary education is the starting point for success in life. It is time to address the inequities in the funding for public education. It is not realistic to continue to ask struggling communities to generate more revenue from already over-taxed property owners. The current funding system only serves to expand the inequities between the haves and the have-nots. Where a family lives should not be the determining factor in the quality of education that their children receives.

“I will provide local officials and law-enforcement personnel with the tools to keep our community safe. I will be an advocate for fiscal responsibility with your tax dollars. That is why I am running for state Senate. I look forward to seeing all of you on the campaign trails in the months ahead. Thank you very much for coming today.”

McGarrigle formally announces state Senate candidacy

Tom McGarrigle announces his candidacy for the 26th Senatorial District.

Tom McGarrigle formally announced his candidacy for state Senate this morning outside his Springfield gas station, claiming he will be a strong voice for job creation and work tirelessly to increase educational opportunities for children.

McGarrigle, the Republican chairman of Delaware County Council, is campaigning to represent the 26th Senatorial District. The district’s current senator, Republican Edwin “Ted” Erickson, is retiring at the end of the year. McGarrigle likely will face Democrat John Kane in the general election.

Though McGarrigle made his formal announcement today, his candidacy has been known since December. The Delaware County GOP endorsed him for the position earlier this year.

Standing outside of the gas station he started from the ground, McGarrigle touted his work on county council. He cited council’s work to save the Delco refineries set for closure, the development of a comprehensive economic plan and the openings of PPL Park and Sun Center Studios.

“I decided to kick my campaign off here because it underscores my strong belief that we need representatives in Harrisburg who understand the challenges families and small businesses face every day,” McGarrigle said. “I’ve been a resident of the 26th Senatorial District for almost 40 years. My wife and I were married here (and) raised our kids here. I want this district to provide the same great opportunity it did for me when I started my business years ago.”

McGarrigle said inequities in public education must be addressed. He said the General Assembly can no longer ask school districts to generate more revenue by increasing property taxes.

“The current funding system only serves to expand the inequities between the haves and the have-nots,” McGarrigle said. “Where a family lives should not be the determining factor in the quality of education that their children receive.”

In an interview after his announcement, McGarrigle said he was willing to examine various plans to reform school funding. He also said he would support implementing further taxes on Marcellus Shale as a way to enhance state revenue, a policy opposed by Republican Gov. Tom Corbett.

McGarrigle was joined for his announcement by several politicians, including state Sen. Dominic Pileggi, R-9, of Chester; state Rep. William Adolph, R-165, of Springfield; state Rep. Tom Killion, R-168, of Midletown; and Erickson.

Erickson praised the work McGarrigle has done as part of Delaware County council, dubbing the Springfield resident as a “well- qualified” candidate.

“I think we are going to be extremely well-served in the 26th Senatorial district by this young man beside me,” Erickson said. “Tom McGarrigle has exactly the kind of background that we need up in the state Senate. He will be a great asset to the Senate and will help Dominic Pileggi as we move forward.”