Wagner keeps hitting Rendell on contract reform

State Auditor General Jack Wagner continues to assail the Rendell administration for not adopting recommended changes in the state procurement process, threatening to go the legislature if the governor does not make the contact bidding process more competitive.

At a press conference and in a release Tuesday, Wagner, who is running for the Democratic nomination to succeed Rendell, kept up …

October 28, 2009 at 7:00 am | Comments (2)

Onorato says he has almost $6M on hand

Gubernatorial hopeful Dan Onorato told supporters Monday that his campaign is closing in on the $6-million mark, reaffirming that his financial advantage in next year’s Democratic primary remains formidable.

In an e-mail Monday morning, Onorato, the Allegheny County executive, said a fundraiser last week had brought the campaign “very close to having almost $6 million cash on hand.”

“I am extremely grateful for the support I have received around the state,” he wrote.

No Democrat …

October 26, 2009 at 1:15 pm | Comments (0)

Rendell harsh on Wagner, softer on Knox

In a recent radio interview, Gov. Ed Rendell confirmed what everyone already knows: He doesn’t like Jack Wagner.

The state Auditor General and fellow Democrat has been raising Rendell’s hackles by, among other things, pRendell probably wanted to be more explicit, but he was talking on emWHYY/em‘s emRadio Times/em and held his tounge, going on to defend the contract with Deloitte Consulting as one that had saved the state millions of dollars. But he made sure to note what he thinks is really on Wagner’s mind./p
p“And by the way, what’s the the auditor general doing these days?” Rendell asked host Marty Moss-Coane./p
p“I don’t know,” she replied./p
p“He’s running for governor. … Interesting.”/p
pDuring the wide-ranging interview late last week, Rendell had nicer things to say about Philadelphia businessman Tom Knox, who served under him as deputy mayor in Philadelphia and is also seeking the party’s nomination for governor./p
p“He did a great job as deputy mayor and he did a great job in cutting costs,” Rendell said. “Tom is a businessman and he understands business./p
p“Query whether he could work with the legislature,” Rendell added, before cutting himself off and acknowledging that he hasn’t done such a good job of that himself./p
p“I think Tom brings a lot of assets to the job.”/p
pRendell has a href="http://politickernv.com/pennsylvania/21473/rendell-looks-stay-neutral-democratic-primary-replace-him" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-article','http://politickernv.com']);return TrackClick("http%3A%2F%2Fpolitickernv.com%2Fpennsylvania%2F21473%2Frendell-looks-stay-neutral-democratic-primary-replace-him','vowed+to+stay+neutral')" target="_blank"vowed to stay neutral/a in next year’s primary, but he is increasingly perceived as backing Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato, if only implicitly. Many of his high-profile donors have been lining up behind Onorato./p
pa href="http://www.whyy.org/podcast/102309_100630.mp3" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-article','http://www.whyy.org']);return TrackClick("http%3A%2F%2Fwww.whyy.org%2Fpodcast%2F102309_100630.mp3','Click+here+to+listen+to+the+full+interview.')" target="_blank">Click here to listen to the full interview.

October 26, 2009 at 1:01 pm | Comments (6)

Onorato leads Dems in poll, but plurality undecided

Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato continues to lead a wide-open Democratic primary for governor, with more than a third of voters still undecided, according to a new poll.

…

October 16, 2009 at 3:56 pm | Comments (2)

Poll shows Corbett leading guv race, but Wagner close

State Attorney General Tom Corbett would top any of his potential Democratic rivals in a general election for governor next year, but state Auditor General Jack Wagner is running just a hair behind him, according to a new poll.

The poll, conducted by Dane & Associates on behalf of the Web site GrassrootsPA, surveyed just over 200 people. The unusually small sample size, coupled with the lack of specifics released, make the poll difficult …

October 9, 2009 at 12:00 pm | Comments (6)

Onorato: ‘I want to change the status quo’

PHILADELPHIA—Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato on Tuesday formally declared his candidacy for governor, making official what had been considered certain for months and pledging to change the entrenched culture of Harrisburg.

“There will be those who say Harrisburg can’t be fixed,” Onorato, a Democrat, said during a speech at City Hall here. “That the culture is the culture, the status quo is the status quo. But let me be clear: Not only will I take …

October 6, 2009 at 11:19 am | Comments (2)

Corbett would top Onorato or Wagner in general election, poll says

If next year’s gubernatorial election ends up as a Pittsburgh scuffle, Republican state Attorney General Tom Corbett is well-positioned to beat either of his potential Democratic opponents from the area.

In a Quinnipiac poll released Wednesday, Corbett leads Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato 47 percent to 27 percent. He leads state Auditor General Jack Wagner 44 percent to 29 percent. In both races, about a quarter of voters remain undecided. The results could be …

September 30, 2009 at 9:15 am | Comments (6)

Poll: Onorato narrowly edges Hoeffel, Wagner in wide open primary

Next year’s Democratic primary for governor remains a crowded free-for-all, with Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato holding a small lead over his most well-known opponents, according to a new poll.

The Quinnipiac University survey released Wednesday showed Onorato garnering 14 percent of the primary vote among registered Democrats, compared to 12 percent for Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Hoeffel and 11 percent for state Auditor General Jack Wagner. Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty was backed by 8 …

September 30, 2009 at 9:07 am | Comments (1)

EXCLUSIVE: Hoeffel will run for governor

Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Hoeffel has decided to seek the Democratic nomination for governor, jumping into an increasingly crowded primary field as he seeks to portray himself as a progressive standard-bearer for the party.

Hoeffel, fueled by a concern that the party may be tacking right, made his decision after p“I do intend to run,” he told empa2010.com /emin an exclusive interview on Sunday. “I’m going to move forward aggressively. I’m in the race and ready to ride.”/p
pAn internal poll by noted Democratic pollster Celinda Lake found Hoeffel holding a narrow lead in a five-way Democratic primary. In the survey of 800 likely primary voters, 15 percent said they would support Hoeffel, compared to 12 percent each for Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato and state Auditor General Jack Wagner. Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty and Philadelphia businessman Tom Knox trailed the pack with six percent and five percent, respectively. The campaign released a poll memo but not the complete details of the survey itself, making its veracity difficult to assess. But Hoeffel was almost certainly boosted by the positive description used by interviewers, who called him “the one true progressive leader in this race, not afraid to stand up for working families, even when it’s politically unpopular.” The poll was consistent with other surveys in showing a majority of voters still undecided. a href="http://www.pa2010.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Lake-Research-Polling-Memo.doc" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-article','http://www.pa2010.com']);return TrackClick("http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pa2010.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2009%2F09%2FLake-Research-Polling-Memo.doc','%5BSee+the+poll+memo+here.%5D')" target="_blank"[See the poll memo here.]/a/p
pThe political challenges for Hoeffel going forward are considerable, but he could very well be boosted by a geographic base in the heart of the Democratic primary electorate. He seemed destined for political obscurity after giving up his House seat in a failed bid to unseat Specter five years ago. After being elected a county commissioner, he was looking at a term as the minority opposition in county government. But Hoeffel forged a power-sharing agreement with Republican Commissioner Jim Matthews, locking out Republican Bruce Castor and amassing a significant amount of control over policy in the suburban Philadelphia county./p
pHe won’t have the financial resources of a candidate like Knox, and may lack insider support compared to Onorato. But hailing from Montgomery County, which has led the leftward political trend in the Philadelphia suburbs over the last decade, has made Hoeffel a mainstay of party politics in southeast Pennsylvania, where the Democratic primary is likely to be decided. And having been prominently placed on a statewide ballot in 2004, his name recognition is likely to exceed other candidates./p
p“That’s probably why I have a narrow lead right now,” Hoeffel said. “I’ve got to build on that.”/p
pSince news of his interest in the race a href="http://www.pa2010.com/2009/07/hoeffel-considering-gubernatorial-bid/" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-article','http://www.pa2010.com']);return TrackClick("http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pa2010.com%2F2009%2F07%2Fhoeffel-considering-gubernatorial-bid%2F','first+broke')" target="_blank">first broke, Hoeffel has voiced concern that the party lacks a viable progressive candidate. While never criticizing them directly, his sentiments have clearly been …

September 20, 2009 at 12:00 pm | Comments (19)

EXCLUSIVE: Doherty gubernatorial run seems a sure shot (Updated)

With a political team in place and fundraising outreach well underway, Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty is now all-but-certain to run for governor, pa2010.com has learned.

Doherty, a Democrat who is expected to cruise to a third term as mayor this fall after …

September 17, 2009 at 10:15 am | Comments (28)