Gerlach says he’s got half-a-million in commitments; only $5K on hand

Congressman Jim Gerlach’s (R-6) campaign on Friday tried to show that refilling his federal campaign coffers after he decided to seek reelection would be a cinch, saying that $525,000 in fundraising “commitments” had already been received.

After embarking on a run for governor, Gerlach decided earlier in January to run for another term in the 6th District again. The numbers his campaign provided were impossible to independently verify, since they referred to money committed, not…

January 30, 2010 at 4:42 pm | Comments (3)

Sixth District GOP hopefuls to debate next month

The Republicans vying for the party’s nomination in the 6th Congressional District will share a stage for the first time next month, when they come together for a debate hosted by the Pennsylvania Conservative Council.

Incumbent Congressman Jim Gerlach, businessman Steven Welch, geologist Walt Hufford and Tea Party activist Patrick Sellers are all expected to attend. The debate is scheduled for Feb. 6 at 4 p.m. at Great Valley High School in Malvern. It will…

January 28, 2010 at 12:17 pm | Comments (7)

Pa. pols react to State of the Union

Even before President Obama had started delivering his first State of the Union address Wednesday night, elected officials and candidates for office were putting out statements in response.

Here is a sampling of the reactions.

Congressman Joe Sestak (D-7), candidate for Senate:

“I applaud the President tonight for recognizing that in 2008, Americans voted for change, not just of parties or policies, but for a fundamental change in politics and the way we do business…

January 28, 2010 at 11:45 am | Comments (8)

Welch’s pitch to party leaders

If you’re wondering how Steven Welch plans to pitch GOP leaders in his insurgent primary bid against incumbent Congressman Jim Gerlach,

January 21, 2010 at 11:49 pm | Comments (0)

Gerlach says Welch is ‘no Scott Brown’

Hours after Republican p“My campaign is 12-days old, and it’s pretty sad that Mr. Welch feels the need to attack my candidacy and long record of service to taxpayers,” Gerlach said in a statement Thursday night. “The bottom-line, Steve Welch is no Scott Brown, as I’m pretty confident that Senator Brown never flipped political parties twice in three years, never contributed to progressive Democrat candidates, and never voted for Barack Obama for President. It’s laughable for him to turn around now and claim to be a life long Republican.”/p
pAs empa2010.com/ema href="http://www.pa2010.com/2009/12/welch-catches-some-heat-in-the-conservative-blogosphere/" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-article','http://www.pa2010.com']);return TrackClick("http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pa2010.com%2F2009%2F12%2Fwelch-catches-some-heat-in-the-conservative-blogosphere%2F','documented+last+month')" target="_blank" documented last month/a, Welch has been registered with the GOP for most of his adult life, except for late 2006 until mid-2009. He contributed $300 to Joe Sestak’s first congressional campaign in 2006, something he wrote about in a href="http://www.pa2010.com/2009/07/the-7th-deserves-better/" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-article','http://www.pa2010.com']);return TrackClick("http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pa2010.com%2F2009%2F07%2Fthe-7th-deserves-better%2F','a+pa2010.com+op-ed.')" target="_blank">a pa2010.com op-ed. Gerlach attributed Welch’s support for Obama to a statement Welch supposedly made—a comment that could not immediately verified—Wednesday night at a local Chester County GOP committee meeting. Gerlach’s campaign said Welch lost a straw poll at that meeting 63 percent to 27 percent, a few nights after

January 21, 2010 at 11:22 pm | Comments (19)

Challenging Gerlach, Welch will stay in the race

Republican Steven Welch said Thursday that he is continuing his campaign in the 6th Congressional District, setting up a potentially bloody primary battle with incumbent Congressman Jim Gerlach.

“People are looking for new direction,” Welch told pa2010.com. “People realize that the only way to rebuild the party is through new faces and a fresh perspective.”

Welch’s decision, disclosed first in an interview with PoliticsPA and later in an e-mail to supporters, was the first time…

January 21, 2010 at 2:54 pm | Comments (4)

MontCo GOP chair backs Gerlach’s reelection bid

The chairman of the Montgomery County Republican Committee publicly voiced his support for Congressman Jim Gerlach’s (R-6) reelection bid Monday, and urged his fellow committee members to join him in backing the incumbent.

In a statement, county GOP leader Bob Kerns said Gerlach “has a tremendous record in Washington as a fiscal conservative fighting for taxpayers and families.”

“The Republican Party, and residents of the 6th Congressional District, are fortunate that he has decided to…

January 18, 2010 at 10:36 am | Comments (3)

Gerlach wins a ChesCo straw poll, but Welch claims a strong showing

Congressman Jim Geralch (R-6) won a straw poll vote of local GOP committee members in Chester County’s Downingtown region Thursday night, but Republican Steven Welch’s campaign posted a relatively strong showing that could further encourage the wealthy entrepreneur to continue his campaign despite Gerlach’s decision to seek reelection.

Welch’s campaign e-mailed reporters Friday to say he had won almost 40 percent of the votes cast by local committee members. An exact breakdown of the votes…

January 15, 2010 at 2:45 pm | Comments (19)

Pa. candidates get involved in Mass. Senate race (Updated)

A surprisingly competitive U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts that could affect the outcome of health care reform legislation is drawing the interest of the Keystone State’s 2010 hopefuls—and prompting some of them to ask their own supporters to pitch into the fight.

As

January 15, 2010 at 1:28 pm | Comments (3)

Welch says he has $650K on hand

Republican Steven Welch said Wednesday that he finished last year with more than $650,000 in campaign cash on hand, indicating that he could have a well-funded primary against incumbent Congressman Jim Gerlach if he decides to stay in the 6th District race.

Welch’s announcement, coupled with a campaign message to supporters that he would host phone banks on behalf of the GOP candidate in a contested Massachusetts Senate race, were the latest indications that the…

January 13, 2010 at 6:30 pm | Comments (4)