Cup of newsroom brew at my side. Could use some Spenda Flavor packets. Ever had the cinnamon? Delish!
Have the city elections on my mind.
We’re going to learn tonight of at least one Republican who’s taking a shot at Lancaster City Council, which if true at least makes for a race. Whether it’s a competitive race is another question.
I can’t tell you who the candidate is yet because, quite simply, I don’t know. I’ve agreed to meet with the new city GOP chairman David Stoltzfus and one of the candidates tonight, and they’ve kept the name under wraps. At least this will be an intriguing.
Is it Patrick Snyder, the former School District of Lancaster board president who once made a run at state Rep. Mike Sturla? Kathleen Harrison, who ran two years ago and came the closest out of three GOP candidates to win a City Council seat? Former mayor Charlie Smithgall? One of the former Republican councilmembers from during the Smithgall dynasty, like Gene Duncan or Harry Stoltzfus? Someone I haven’t thought of yet?
Who would you like to see on the Republican side?
Maybe more importantly, can a Republican even win in Lancaster city? I’m compiling voter registration numbers right now, and they aren’t pretty for the GOP.
On the Democratic side, we know Mayor Rick Gray is seeking re-election. Council president Louise Williams is, too. Ditto Jose Urdaneta. Tim Roschel is undecided, and Kendra Saunders is opting out of the campaign.
Democrats have a winning streak in the city dating back to 2003 when they swept three City Council seats. Then came Gray’s 15-percentage-point trouncing of Smithgall two years later, and on his coattails came four more Democrats to City Council. That year, too, Dems swept the row offices, leaving not one single Republican holding elected office. Sturla beat back Snyder in their 2006 state House contest in a 26-point landslide, and last year a trio of Dems beat a trio of Republicans.
Elsewhere in our little political realm:
*Republican Senate Majority Leader Dom Pileggi is shopping around for support on a measure that would restrict how former state employees or lobbyists operate in Harrisburg. The Pittsburgh Tribune Review has the story.
*Friends of the Nest, John Micek and Josh Drobnyk of the Allentown Morning Call, have a look at what the stimulus package deal means to the state budget.
