About 100 supporters showed up for the opening of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party’s coordinated campaign office in Bucks on Monday night.
It is the first office that supports the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign as well as Democrats down the ballot to open in the state. It is located at 378 N. Main Street in Doylestown.
“Most of you know what we’re trying to do with the party, and that’s to win,” said Eric Nagy, Executive Director of the Bucks County Democratic Committee. “We are committed to getting this thing right. We cannot take any chances this year.”
Nagy stressed a bottom-up approach, saying that support should start with local races to build a wider base for the presidential election.
“We will get nowhere in this party, will will not win unless we build our bench and start winning elections from school board all the way up to Congress,” he said.
The most recent PPP poll has Clinton leading Donald Trump 46 to 42 percent in the state, with 11 percent unsure.
Though Pennsylvania has voted Democratic in the last six presidential elections, it is still largely considered a battleground state. In 2012, for example, President Obama edged Republican Mitt Romney by just 5.4 percent.
“We’re in communities across the Keystone State energizing and mobilizing voters to elect Hillary Clinton in November,” said Corey Dukes, Hillary for America Pennsylvania State Director. “We’re taking nothing for granted in Pennsylvania.”
During the primary, there were Clinton offices in Philadelphia, West Chester, Lansdowne, Ambler, Reading, Scranton, Pittsburgh, Erie, Harrisburg and State College. This office will support all Pennsylvania Democrats in the general election, including state Rep. Steve Santarsiero’s congressional run against Republican Brian Fitzpatrick.
The Trump campaign has not officially settled in Bucks yet, but there are Pennsylvania offices in Clarks Summit, Monroeville, Hazleton, Conshohocken and Mechanicsburg, according to the Trump campaign website.
According to a representative of the Bucks County Republican Committee, there is not yet a Republican-coordinated campaign office in Bucks.
From the Doylestown office, Bucks Commissioner Diane Marseglia spoke to the crowd of supporters during the office opening.
“Welcome to Hillary’s House,” she said. “I’m hoping that hundreds, maybe even thousands of people will come through here and volunteer, so maybe we can keep Bucks County, Pennsylvania and hopefully the United States blue through November.”
Marseglia also spoke about the primary election between Clinton and Bernie Sanders, and how that should shape Democratic efforts moving forward.
“There are more things that unite us than divide us,” she said. “The second thing is that we can’t let what divides us get in the way of what’s really important. The third is that we cannot let Donald Trump be commander in chief.”
Democrats hope the Doylestown office will be a hub for organizing local activity for the upcoming elections. It will be the base for volunteer opportunities, meetings and canvassing in Bucks County.
