Endorsements continue to roll in for the candidates in PA-13 as the race to replace Allyson Schwartz takes shape.
Today belonged to State Sen. Daylin Leach who scored three endorsements, including those of former Congressman Joe Hoeffel and State Rep. and prominent LGBT activist Brian Sims.
“I have endorsed Daylin’s campaign and agreed to be its Chair because I know that Daylin Leach is the progressive leader that we must have in Congress,” Hoeffel said in a statement published on Daylin’s campaign website. “We NEED someone who will show the courage to stand up the Tea Party and far right wingers that seem to dominate the debate in the U.S. House of Representatives these days — and Daylin is the only candidate running who has the record of taking them on, and beating them.”
Hoeffel was Schwartz’s predecessor in the U.S. House and the 2004 Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate against then-Republican incumbent Arlen Specter. Hoeffel remains a prominent voice in the thirteenth district and his support is a big win for the Leach campaign.
State Representative Brian Sims (D-Phila.), a prominent voice for the LGBT community in Pa., also threw his support behind Leach.
“Daylin Leach has been a leader on LGBT civil rights in the Pennsylvania legislature for the last decade, which is why I have endorsed him,” Sims said. “This is a pivotal time in Washington for issues of equality, and we need proven leaders like Daylin who have a record of fighting for our rights. I know that Daylin will be our champion in DC.”
Late last month, Leach officiated at the wedding of two women in Montgomery County in Southeast Pa., adding to his longtime support for same-sex marriage.
In addition, Leach secured the backing of his colleague State Senator Judy Schwank (D-Berks), who cited his support of women’s rights and education.
“In the State Senate, I have come to know Daylin as a passionate fighter working with him challenging the Corbett Administration and the Republican’s most draconian ideological initiatives — limiting women’s access to health care, cutting funding for education, and ending life saving programs that serve the neediest Pennsylvanians,” Schwank said in her endorsement.
Leach is competing for the PA-13 Democratic nomination against former Congresswoman Marjorie Margolies, State Rep. Brendan Boyle and medical practitioner Valerie Arkoosh.
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8 Responses
Progressive against Daylin-
I’ve yet to meet a progressive who didn’t like Daylin.
As for “Pat Browne put out SB1050”
Now, I remember being at a party with Daylin a few years ago, and he was discussing a bill the Senate GOP was working to curtail progress on gay rights by offering some watered-down concessions, to pretend like they were doing something, and delay progress on more critical issues. Daylin said he had worked to defeat that bad bill, so that a better Dem bill could take it’s place.
Now, I’m NOT saying that this was the same bill that Daylin was discussing, but he may have thought it didn’t go far enough for him to be a co-sponsor or maybe he preferred a bill that included marriage equality.
But, any implication that Daylin isn’t a progressive is just ludicrous.
I would also like to say that I, myself, am a lesbian in a partnership, but what’s gay marriage if you can be fired, evicted, or kicked out of places because of your sexual orientation or gender identity. Also, poverty issues effect the LGBT community as well, and no matter if Daylin’s claims in his “Liberal Lion” video about his childhood are true, he is still out of touch with the issues facing 1/3 of the district he seeks to represent.
“Politics is serious business, we need a Congressperson, not a clown”
-Progressive Against Daylin
I believe that Daylin would be a bad choice for PA 13. There are a lot of progressive Democrats who think that his record of being the clown prince of the Pennsylvania Senate is a turnoff.
Sure, Daylin’s a fighter for the LGBT community when its about marriage. Last session, Pat Browne put out SB1050, which would forbid discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Leach’s name was not on there. Leach put his name on SB300 this session, but that was only because he would have been embarrased if conservadems such as Solobay, Wozniak, or Kasunic would have put their names on it before him.
And on other issues, Senator Leach is of extremely poor quality. For example, he promised a Philly based PAC last year that he would sign onto a single payer bill. Well, SB400 was introduced this year, yet Leach’s name isn’t on it.
Also, he represents an area where the school privatization movement has a stranglehold. What’s gonna happen when he goes to Congress and will be repping parts of Philly, where the state of Pennsylvania has kicked around public schools, and took away our right to elect our school board and to collect taxes to support its operation instead of being dependent on hostile parties.
I live in Frankford, and this joker would be bad for North and Northeast Philly. He is out of touch with our needs.
“Politics is serious business, we need a Congressperson, not a clown”
-Progressive Against Daylin
Kathleen 3
So what don’t you like? ? ?
Daylin standing up for gay rights?
Daylin standing up for women’s rights?
Daylin standing up for voter rights?
Daylin standing up for affordable health care?
Daylin standing up for privacy rights?
An endorsement by Sims or Hoeffel would be enough to convince me to not vote for Leach.
Daylin Leach, on his own, however, is enough to convince any patriotic American to never, ever vote for Daylin Leach.
Bob-
You couldn’t be more wrong.
Hoeffel is a great endorsement for a candidate known as “The Liberal Lion”.
Good for Daylin. I’m a little bemused by Margolies. One vote isn’t a record. And it wasn’t exactly courageous to wait until the 11th hour to support Clinton’s budget.
An endorsement from Hoeffel is laughable. The last guy on the planet any Democrat should seek out.