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Race for state Senate expected to be close 40th District will be decided tomorrow Monday, March 19, 2001 By Edward G. Robinson III, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
With the 40th District state senatorial special election scheduled for tomorrow, the candidates spent the weekend in parades, rallies and last-minute door-knocking.
Voters will choose among state Rep. Jane Orie, R-McCandless, Democratic nominee Jim Rooney of Butler County and independent Jim Stefanick of Ross to fill the seat left vacant when Melissa Hart, R-Bradford Woods, was elected to Congress.
The 40th District comprises parts of Allegheny, Westmoreland and Butler counties.
The race has been competitive, with both major party candidates spending trunk-loads of money in attempts to secure the seat.
Anticipating a close race, both major party candidates put in long hours over the weekend, trying to procure undecided voters and make sure their supporters head to the polls, which will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Orie, 39, of McCandless, a former prosecutor who was re-elected to her third term in the state House last year, spent St. Patrick's Day appearing in the traditional Downtown parade, visiting homes and making phone calls.. A Shaler resident invited Orie over for Sunday evening tea, where she and some neighbors met.
On Saturday, Rooney, 33, of Seven Fields, spoke at the Brotherhood Rally held at the Elks club in Arnold before heading to a rally hosted by the Sons of Italy in New Kensington.
Rooney, who is on leave as assistant director of leadership development at the University of Pittsburgh's business school, is the son of Steelers President Dan Rooney and grandson of team founder Art Rooney. He received a boost Friday when legendary running back Franco Harris went door-knocking on his behalf in West View.
Stefanick, 42, said he is running because he believes the major parties don't represent the interests of the people. He works in his family's real estate company and has run a low-key campaign with few signs and no television commercials.
The race is one of two special elections that will take place in the state tomorrow.
In the Philadelphia suburbs, voters are being asked to choose a successor to another Republican, former state Sen. Joseph Loeper, R-Delaware, who was forced to resign after his conviction for concealing payments from a government consultant.
In the Delaware County district, Republican Ted Erickson, a former biologist who serves as Delaware County executive director, and Philadelphia lawyer Melissa Maxman, the Democratic nominee, are waging a less-expensive campaign -- together, they have raised $500,000.
The scheduling of the two contests was at the discretion of the Senate's Republican leadership and was calculated to aid their candidates. Turnout tends to be lower in special elections that do not coincide with the standard primary or general election dates.
And low turnouts are thought to benefit Republican candidates since GOP voters are considered more likely to show up at the polls than their Democratic counterparts. The anticipated turnout places a special premium on grass roots, get-out-the-vote efforts that identify supporters and then help them get to the polls.
But whatever the outcome of the two contests, it won't produce a dramatic shift in the balance of power in Harrisburg. Even if the Democrats captured both seats, they would not be in hailing distance of reversing the GOP's 30-20 margin of control in the Senate.
The 40th District has a Democratic registration majority, but that is deceptive. The district's voting performance, in contrast to its registration, has been increasingly Republican over the last decade.
And although initial campaign contribution reports showed Rooney with a significant fund-raising lead, buttressed by large contributions from Democratic political action committees, Republicans have moved quickly to redress that imbalance.
On Wednesday and Thursday alone, the State Republican Campaign Committee poured $115,000 into Orie's coffers. That more than doubled her previous contributions from GOP party committees.
Rooney's two largest contributions -- $100,000 each -- came from the Democratic State Senate Campaign Committee, and from Campaign 2000, a political action committee that also supports Democratic legislative candidates.
His largest individual donor was his mother, Patricia Rooney, who, so far, has contributed $75,000 to the campaign.
While the candidates have bickered over advertising and campaign tactics, they also debated issues affecting the economically diverse district, particularly property tax reform, health care, education and transportation.
All three candidates support finding ways to lower prescription drug costs and stopping violence in schools. Similarly, they all support improved education. They all were against vouchers for students.
Politics Editor James O'Toole contributed to this report.
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