Tom Waring, the Wire
Democrat Shaughnessy Naughton last week announced she would again seek the Democratic nomination in the 8th Congressional District.
Naughton ran in 2014, but lost in the primary by 817 votes to Kevin Strouse, who had most of the party behind him. Strouse went on to lose to Republican Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick, who will not be running again in 2016.
Naughton joins state Rep. Steve Santarsiero in seeking the Democratic nomination.
A Bucks County native, Naughton will stress her middle-class roots and experience as a scientist and small business owner. She wants to provide more opportunities for working families.
“It’s nothing but a food fight in Washington, and working families are the ones dealing with the mess,” Naughton said. “We need better job opportunities, better access to a quality education and better protections for Social Security and Medicare. I’m committed to cleaning up the mess and fighting for working families.”
Former Gov. Ed Rendell has endorsed Naughton.
“Shaughnessy is a hard-working woman. She runs a business and she’s invested in her community. I like her because she’s tough, she’s smart and she’s going to fight for regular people,” he said.
Naughton earned a chemistry degree from Bryn Mawr College at the age of 20, has a number of U.S. patents from her work in drug discovery and design and restructured her family’s publishing business.
“This district is my home and, for me, this race is personal. I know these families and the challenges they face because they’re a lot like those my own family faced. My mom cleaned houses to support us, and I’m grateful for her sacrifice because it gave us opportunities. I want to fight in Congress for those same opportunities for other families,” Naughton said.
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In other campaign news, Santarsiero last week announced the formation of a campaign committee.
Det Ansinn, president of Doylestown Borough Council, said, “As one of Shaughnessy Naughton’s earliest supporters for the 2014 cycle, I know her to be smart and capable with a genuine passion for the environment and policy. That being said, Steve Santarsiero is my candidate for 2016. I’ve known Steve for more than a decade and have seen him put his words into action. I am thrilled that he stepped up to the plate for 2016.”
Among his other supporters are Bucks County National Organization for Women President Helene Ratner; Bucks County Commissioner Diane Marseglia; state Reps. John Galloway and Tina Davis; former congressman Peter Kostmayer; and Kathy Boockvar and Kevin Strouse, who were the Democratic congressional nominees in 2012 and 2014, respectively.
Santarsiero was elected as a Lower Makefield supervisor in 2003. He won his first race for state representative in 2008. He and his wife, Ronni, have lived in Bucks County for 19 years. They have three children: Nancy (17), Billy (15) and Johnny (11).
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Jefferson County President Judge John Foradora last week announced his candidacy for a seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
Foradora will seek the Democratic nomination in the May 19 primary. There are three openings.
“Pennsylvania is much more, much bigger, than just Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Pennsylvania has the second-largest rural population in the U.S. — it is time our Supreme Court reflected that population,” he said. “To have a truly balanced court, and to truly clean it up, we need a justice who has seen what life looks like for Pennsylvanians who live in the vast ‘T’ that is often overlooked in elections.”
Foradora was elected in 2001. He was the first Democrat elected to serve as a Jefferson County judge.
“Unlike the other candidates in this race, as president judge of a one-judge county, I have been on the front line of every type of case that can come before the Court — criminal cases, misdemeanors to murder; divorce, custody, dependency, adoptions, property disputes, medical malpractice, contract disputes — you name it, I’ve seen it. I know with my experience and the values I hold deep in my heart I can help clean up our Supreme Court.”
