HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Democratic Senator Bob Casey will seek a fourth term in office, bringing the power of incumbency and name recognition unmatched in Pennsylvania politics to defend his party from a seat in a critical state presidential battle.
The announcement by Casey, the longest-serving Democratic U.S. senator in Pennsylvania history, gives Democrats a boost ahead of the tough 2024 Senate map. They have to defend incumbents not only in red states – Montana, Ohio and West Virginia – but also in some swing states.
Casey, who will turn 63 in a few days, is a key ally of labor unions and President Joe Biden. In Congress, Casey, a moderate Democrat, supports all of Biden’s top priorities and has forged a close relationship with the president, at least in part because the man also has a bond that goes beyond politics: He’s from his hometown of Scranton.
In re-election, Casey’s message seemed to echo Biden’s campaign for a second term. Casey pointed to a landmark bill produced by the Democratic-controlled Congress that would expand spending on infrastructure such as airports and broadband internet, to revive the domestic semiconductor industry, to provide hydrogen fuel plants and reduce drug costs for Medicare recipients.
Casey casts himself as a “corporate special interest,” and says there’s more to be done to lower the cost of living for working families, such as child care or prescription drugs.
“It means being willing to fight and not backing down from the fight for these communities and families,” Casey said in an interview last week.
AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File
The Republican Senate’s campaign arm, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, has attacked Casey for voting for legislation under Biden that it says has increased inflation, and threatens Social Security and Medicare — two programs Casey has long championed.
Casey said Republicans are “dreaming” and argued that the GOP has long fought against Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security by proposing budgets and policy ideas that would “destroy” the programs.
Republicans don’t have a deep bench to challenge Casey, but they do have one potential top-tier candidate: former hedge fund CEO David McCormick, who narrowly lost the GOP nomination for Senate in 2022 to Dr. Mehmet Oz.
McCormick, who has strong support from the party brass, has a solid-gold resume as a decorated Gulf War veteran who graduated from West Point, received a doctorate from Princeton, served at the highest level of then-President George W. Bush’s administration and opened one of the world’s largest hedge funds.
He also has the deep pockets and connections in politics, business, and government to make endorsements and campaign contributions — none of which are enough to defeat Oz, a candidate backed by Donald Trump who lost the general election to the Democrats. John Fetterman.
If he runs, McCormick may have a contested primary: State Sen. Doug Mastriano has said he could run and suggested he would win “hands down.” It prompted a handshake from party leaders after Mastriano, who was endorsed by Trump, ran a far-right campaign in last year’s gubernatorial race, and was soundly beaten.
Many Republicans admit it will be difficult to defeat Casey. Some privately say that he is unbeaten.
Casey is perhaps the best-known politician in Pennsylvania, although he has a relatively low profile in Washington with no major committee chair in his portfolio. In Pennsylvania, he has run for statewide seven times – winning six of those races – and is the son of the state’s former two-term governor.
He has never run a close race for the Senate – won the 2018 race with 13 percentage points – and kept an active schedule on the campaign trail last year with the help of Fetterman.
Still, Casey said he expects a tough race, given Pennsylvania’s status as a battleground state.
“I’ve spent years on the road and going to all 67 counties and delivering for the citizens and communities of our state,” Casey said. “And that’s the approach I’m going to take to the campaign: We’re going to go everywhere and try to get every vote.”
He is one of the last lawmakers on Capitol Hill to call himself a “pro-life Democrat,” and supported a bill last year to write abortion rights into federal law when it became clear the Supreme Court would overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade. rule.
Casey is not the only Democrat in the abortion debate. Her father, former Gov. Bob Casey, Sr., opposed abortion rights and signed legislation in the state that produced another landmark abortion case, Planned Parenthood v. Casey. In 1992, the Supreme Court ultimately upheld Roe in the case but allowed states to add some restrictions on the procedure.
Casey said she does not support a complete ban on abortion, and believes lawmakers should work to reduce the number of abortions and unintended pregnancies in her state, and do more to support women and families.
In January, as he prepared for the campaign, Casey announced that he would undergo prostate cancer surgery. More than seven weeks after the surgery, Casey says she is on the mend. The office said the procedure went smoothly and required no further treatment. He has since returned to work.