The LuLac Edition #1913, January 23rd, 2012

121rst District candidate Peter Mailloux with Rick Arnold at Arnold's Saturday event. Mailloux has his sights set on Eddie Day Pashinski's seat. (Photo by Jim O'Meara.)


119th District candidate Rick Arnold with 116th District Representative Tarah Toohill. Some of Toohill's current distrait will become part of the 119th if the reapportionment stands. (Photo by Jim O'Meara).


Prospective Congressional candidate Matt Cartwright. (Times Leader photo)

GOP TAKING ON THE DEMS

It is early but three Republicans in Luzerne County are setting their sights on being a State $Representative. To do it, they are going to have to unseat Democrats. In the 119th, Rick Arnold will take on Freshman Gerald Mullery might benefit from the redistricting. My friend Gort reports that In 2010 Arnold lost by just 1300+ votes with a Libertarian candidate in the race. If this is a 2 person race it could be very competitive. Arnold kicked off his campaign on a snowy Saturday at the Crestwood Industrial Park. The bleak day, the awful weather and the cold chill were a perfect backdrop for Arnold’s main campaign message: JOBS: AND LACK THEREOF IN HIS DISTRICT. Arnold is a personable hard working fellow and impressed many in his run in 2010.
In the 120th, Phyllis Mundy faces Aaron Kaufer. Kaufer will announce his candidacy for state representative of the 120th district in front of family, friends and supporters at the American Legion in Kingston at 6 p.m. Tuesday, January 24, 2012, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. (speech will be held at 7 p.m.) Kaufer is a young candidate with a lot of energy. It will be interesting to see how he runs this campaign against a two decade experienced Representative like Mundy. The key to both the 119th and 120th race is to keep it a one on one contest and not have a third party, (as worthy as they are) muck things up. This is where the political powerhouses (if there are any left with juice in the GOP) might come in handy.
In the 121st Eddie Day Pashinski will face former Fairview Township Supervisor Pete Mailloux, a Republican with a very prominent name in the Wyoming Valley. Mailloux also owns a business in Mountain Top. He kicks off his campaign also on Tuesday at 7:00PM at the Wilkes-Barre Township Fire hall. (Presumably there will be a lot of room since the FBI hauled out a lot of stuff out of there last week!) Mailloux has a good reputation, presents himself well but will be facing a three term incumbent. If I were running his campaign, I’d see how many of Pashinski’s relatives are on local government payrolls, if any. Pashinski who authored his own health care plan a few years ago has gained a lot of traction and respect in Harrisburg and be tough to beat.
But the fact that the GOP are fielding candidates is a good thing for the party. Plus there is a re energized base among young people who are hellbent on putting people in office in the County. While Tarah Toohill and Stefanie Salavantis ran tough, well thought out campaigns, it is not an accident that they won by taking on people who never thought they’d ever be in a fight.

CARTWRIGHT TO SPEAK

Matt Cartwright will be making a major announcement regarding the 2012 Congressional Election on Tuesday, January 24th, 2012 at 12:00 pm.
Cartwright, a Lackawanna County resident and attorney with Munley, Munley and Cartwright, will be speaking at the Hilton Scranton Hotel and Conference Center, 100 Adams Avenue, Scranton, PA 18503. This event will be open to the public.
Cartwright will most likely discussing his intention to run for Congress in the 17th Congressional District. He’s not calling the news conference to discuss his picks for the Super Bowl!

WITHIN REACH?

The 11th Congressional District race has been a hot topic of conversation regarding the re-election chances of Lou Barletta. It has been assumed that because he is a Republican, Barletta’s new district boundaries are overwhelmingly Republican. But in a statement released by the Congressman;s office to Bill Kelly on WVIA TV’s “State of Pennsylvania”, the actual breakdown of the district is 44% Republican, 43% Democrat and 13% Independent. If that is the case, then maybe Wilkes Barre Democrat Bill Vinsko might actually be within striking distance of making this race more competitive. By no means will Vinsko’s entry mean a slam dunk but these numbers now shed new light on the upcoming race in the 11th. No Republican in the outer reaches of the district will not vote for a Democrat not residing in the district, albeit barely. But an Independent might.