Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Matt Smith defeated D. Raja for Pennsylvania State Senate with 53% of the vote.
Matt Smith bear hugged supporters and feverishly pumped hit arms in the air moments after learning he had won election to the Pennsylvania State Senate. The normally subdued 3-term state representative showed more emotion than usual after a hard-fought battle against fellow Mt. Lebanon resident D. Raja. Smith takes over the seat formerly held by John Pippy. The district wraps around the South Hills of Pittsburgh from Peters Township up to Findlay. “When you have a message that resonates, then that will trump money every day of the week,” Smith said about being outspent 3-to-1 on the airwaves. “The message we have is resonating with people.” Smith, standing with his wife, Eileen, and three young children, Delaney, Emerson and Jameson, …
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Readers of the site PoliticsPA say the race for the 37th district will grab voters' attention in the fall.
Readers of the site PoliticsPA selected the Raja-Smith race for the 37th district as the most competitive state race in the upcoming November election. In a recent poll, 34 percent of respondees said the race between Mt. Lebanon Republican D. Raja and Democratic write-in candidate Matt Smith will be the most competitive race of the 2012 election cycle, according to PoliticsPA. The poll notched 395 votes total. Raja and Smith are vying to replace the seat vacated by former Pennsylvania Sen. John Pippy in the 37th district, which includes Moon Township. Pippy announced his retirement from state politics in January, but resigned from his post last month to become the CEO of the Pennsylvania Coal Alliance. Raja, a former Mt. Lebanon …
Sunday, July 1, 2012
State Sen. John Pippy left his seat in the state Senate at midnight.
Pennsylvania Sen. John Pippy, R-Moon, formally resigned his seat in the Senate late Saturday after casting his budget vote. Pippy announced in January that he would not seek re-election for the state legislature. He has served in the state Senate since 2003. Pippy resigned at midnight, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He called his work as a state senator the most "meaningful experience I have had in my professional career," according to the resignation letter obtained by the newspaper. He served in the state House for six years prior to being elected to the state Senate. Republican D. Raja, a business owner from Mt. Lebanon, is vying for Pippy's seat in the 37th district in November's general election. He may face an …
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
State Rep. Mark Mustio of Moon has conceded the election after a bruising weekend battle over campaign literature aimed at his primary opponent.
Mt. Lebanon business owner D. Raja has won the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania's 37th Senate district in Tuesday's state primary election. More than 97 percent of Allegheny County precincts have reported returns. Raja, who is vying to replace outgoing state Sen. John Pippy, R-Moon, defeated two other candidates to win the GOP nomination with more than 40 percent of the vote, according to unofficial returns. No Democrat has entered the race for the seat, but Pleasant Hills Democrat Greg Parks has indicated that he will run as a write-in candidate in the November general election, according to Raja campaign officials. Raja and his supporters gathered at the Crowne Plaza Pittsburgh South hotel in Bethel park. He confirmed that …
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Sue Means, a Republican running to replace state Sen. John Pippy, R-Moon, said redistricting proposals could disenfranchise current district voters.
Sue Means, a Bethel Park conservative activist vying to replace state Sen. John Pippy, has cried foul at redistricting proposals that could cut much of the south hills out of the 37th senatorial district. A proposed redrawing the 37th district would remove nearly half of registered voters who live in the district, including Bethel Park. “Clearly these boundaries have been gerrymandered for political purposes,” Means said in a statement. “It is probably not coincidental that a member of the reapportionment committee, House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, has endorsed [Rep. Mark] Mustio’s candidacy.” Means, Mustio and Mt. Lebanon business owner D. Raja are each seeking the Republican nomination for Pippy's seat in the April 24 primary. No …
Thursday, April 12, 2012
D. Raja, Sue Means and Rep. Mark Mustio discussed budgets, property reassessments, the sewer tap-in moratorium in Peters Township, health care, education and Marcellus Shale Tuesday night.
The three candidates for the 37th district state Senate seat, replacing Sen. John Pippy, convened Tuesday night at Peters Township Middle School for a debate. Voters and Washington County Republican leaders attended the event, which was hosted by Peters Township Republicans. Former Mt. Lebanon Commissioner D. Raja, Sue Means of Bethel Park and state Rep. Mark Mustio, of Moon Township, answered questions—both broad and specific—concerning their role if they took office and their stance on issues concerning Peters Township residents and those of and surrounding communities. State Rep. John Maher introduced the candidates and Peters Councilman David Ball moderated the debate. The three candidates will face-off in the primary election on April…
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Sue Means, D. Raja and Mark Mustio will debate at Peters Township Middle School.
This spring's state primary could leave a big impact on Moon area residents—the Republican winner on April 24 might be an unchallenged nominee in November's general election. The Peters Township Republicans organization will sponsor a debate between the Republican candidates for the 37th Senatorial District seat, which Sen. John Pippy, who announced his retirement earlier this year, currently holds . The debate will begin at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Peters Township Middle School auditorium. Rep. John Maher, who represents Pennsylvania's 40th District—also a candidate for PA Auditor General—will lead the opening ceremonies. The debating candidates are Sue Ann Means, Republican state committee woman from Bethel Park; Mark Mustio, 44th …
Monday, January 30, 2012
The congressman's announcement was made after Allegheny Councilman Vince Gastgeb ended a five-day campaign for the seat in the 37th senatorial district.
Pennsylvania Rep. Mark Mustio, R-Moon, said he will vie for departing Sen. John Pippy's seat in the November race. Mustio's bid for the 37th state senatorial district comes on the heels of Allegheny Councilman Vince Gastgeb's announcement that he will end his campaign for Pippy's seat just five days after it began. Mustio, who last week endorsed Gastgeb, said he chose to enter the race after the county councilman said he would no longer seek the position. Pippy, of Moon, said last week that he will not run for re-election. "Yes it is [a result of Gastgeb's departure]," Mustio said. "There were people who had approached me about it along the way. Me and [State Rep. and Pennsylvania auditor general candidate] John Maher and Vince [Gastgeb] …
Charles Addleman
5:02 pm on Thursday, November 8, 2012
He should run for school board. more ›