A big Republican primary field for governor in Pennsylvania is spurring growing discomfort among party leaders that a widely splintered primary vote could produce a winner who cannot beat Democrat Josh Shapiro in November's general election.
HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania -- A massive Republican primary field for governor in Pennsylvania is spurring growing discomfort among party leaders that a widely splintered primary vote could produce a winner who cannot beat Democrat Josh Shapiro in November's general election.
It has also propelled party leaders to begin working on a strategy to persuade some candidates who are perceived as weaker to drop out. They worry that a weak or polarizing candidate could theoretically win the primary election with less than 20% of the vote. A recent Fox News poll in Pennsylvania showed 19% of GOP primary voters saying they support Lou Barletta and 18% backing Doug Mastriano. Dave White and Bill McSwain followed closely behind, with 14% and 11%, respectively.
On Thursday, one of the 10 candidates, Jason Richey, a political newcomer, said he is dropping out and endorsing McSwain.Pennsylvania's national Republican committee member, Andrew Reilly, said the large GOP field is strong and diverse, and the result of poor leadership by Wolf and Biden. But he did not necessarily endorse every candidate in it.
However, Mastriano - who once said that former President Donald Trump"asked me" to run for governor - is a particular outlier.He has been a chief peddler of conspiracy theories that Democrats stole the election from Trump in 2020. It helped make him a key ally of Trump in Pennsylvania, as he allied himself with others who maintain the election was fraudulent and are pushing to overturn it.
In addition to nominating a radioactive candidate, party officials also worry about an expensive primary battle that drains GOP campaign donors and produces a fractured base that is difficult to unify.
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