DENT DECIDES NOT TO RUN IN 2018
2018 PROMISES TO BE AS INTENSE AS 2016
Charlie Dent has announced he will not seek re-election in 2018. Dent had made a decision early in the 2016 race to be a Never-Trumper. While he was re-elected by a strong margin in 2016, his hostility to Trump, to the Tea party, and to the grass roots republicans was made clear. Many held their nose in 2016 to keep a Republican majority in the house and voted for Dent and also Toomey.
Dent still had a chance to make things better after the election, but chose to go on MSNBC many times and trash Trump. He did not have to like him, he did not have to praise him, but he did need to support the agenda that he and others ran on for years. He simply could not do it, and so his decision not to run was appropriate. Whether he thought it was the right thing to do for the party or feared he may loose in a primary, only he knows.
Justin Simmons a Lehigh county republican state representative had made it clear he was going to challenge Dent in the upcoming primary. This took courage to challenge a long term incumbent. He will not be running for his state seat. This along with Dent's low polling numbers among Republicans in the district may have been enough to force Dent's decision.
There will now possibly be a large groups of primary candidates, both in the republican and democratic primary. The democrats may believe they now have an opportunity to take this seat, but they will need a more conservative candidate than those who are talking about it so far. Many democrat's believe if they can persuade John Morganelli or Lisa Boscolla to run, that they may have a chance. Much will depend on their party's platform for the future. They will need something better than to just trash Trump. Both Morganelli and Boscolla may have some trepidation of being connected to a national party that is rudderless, divisive, and has no plan for the future. Maybe the local spokesman for democrats, Berni O'Hare, should run for the seat. It would be a lot of fun.
Whatever, 2018 looks like it will be a continuation of 2016, maybe more intense and more local, but just as important.
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