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Doherty camp: ‘One less person to compete’

Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty’s campaign argued Friday that Tom Knox’s withdrawal from the gubernatorial race was good news, leaving one less Democrat to vie with Doherty for votes in the eastern part of the state.

“I think fewer candidates in the race means less competition,”  campaign spokesman Mark Nevins told pa2010.com. “On that front I think it’s probably a positive development.”

That logic would seem to cut against what Doherty’s strategists had themselves identified as the best path to victory in May: a spending war between Knox and Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato that could give voters an appetite for an alternative candidate. When pressed, Nevins acknowledged that scenario is no longer there.

“The playing field may change a bit but our game plan is unchanged,” he said. “We still need to make our argument to voters all over Pennsylvania, and that is that Chris Doherty’s got the best record on job creation and economic growth. … There were a lot of scenarios we had talked about that were winning scenarios. Having a candidate out changes that, but there are still scenarios that get us to a win.”

Nevins called Knox’s candidacy “good for the party because he talked about a lot of important issues.”

And he played down increasing speculation that Doherty is being pressured to join Onorato on a gubernatorial ticket as his Lieutenant Governor running mate, saying that “we are committed to running for governor.”

“We’re full speed ahead and Mayor Doherty is working hard at getting out meting as many voters as possible, and we feel pretty good about our chances,” Nevins said.

“It’s flattering,” he said of the speculation. “We take it as a compliment when people talk about the benefit of Chris Doherty being on a ticket. I think it means people recognize that he’s got a record of accomplishment.”

January 22, 2010 at 1:39 pm

--Dan Hirschhorn

Tags: Chris Doherty, Dan Onorato, Lt. Gov., Tom Knox

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