County GOP makes plans to be heard in 2020
Butler County Republicans rallied Saturday to begin electoral races looking to pit their county's conservative strength against distant Democratic rivals.
In a joint event hosted by Republican Women of Butler County and the county's Republican committee, various GOP candidates pitched themselves to potential campaign volunteers and voters.
Nearly 100 people gathered at Holly Pointe building in downtown Butler for the event, which organizers called the 2020 Kickoff Party.
The races with candidates present varied from local official jobs to the U.S. Congress.
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-16th, served as keynote speaker. Another candidate for the U.S. House, Sean Parnell, came to talk to Butler County residents about his campaign against Rep. Conor Lamb, the Democrat representing the 17th Congressional District.
Al Lindsay, president of the Butler County Republican Committee, touched on both races in an interview at the event.“I've heard it said that this particular race,” Lindsay said of Parnell's race, “is likely going to be one of the most watched races in the entire country.”He said his group wanted to rally not just to ensure Republican victories in Butler County, where there is already a strong Republican base, but to amass enough votes to overcome totals in other areas.Lamb's district, for instance, includes just a handful of Butler County precincts along with Beaver County and much of northwest Pittsburgh.After state congressional lines were redrawn in 2018, Kelly's district grew to include all of Erie County. He won with just 51.6 percent of the vote in his first election with the new map in 2018 and has already attracted Democratic challengers from Erie for the 2020 race.Lindsay pointed to the presidential race as well in discussing Butler County's Republican strength.
“We have to turn out enough votes, so that we can overcome totals in places like Philadelphia,” Lindsay said.President Donald Trump's 2020 re-election gear was on display and available at the event, and part of the meeting's aim was to connect volunteers with petitions for the president. Attendees were instructed not to circulate those petitions until Jan. 28, when petition circulation opens.Mary Kaye Soriano, president of the Republican women's group, said she hoped the event added a few names to their party's list of volunteers.“We're matching candidates to volunteers and vice versa,” Soriano said. “We have a really dynamic group of people here making it happen.”She said she was pleased with the turnout, especially considering Saturday's poor weather.
Kelly gave a keynote speech largely in support of Trump, urging voters to turn out for the president's re-election campaign.Other candidates, both newcomers and incumbents, mingled and sought support. Marci Mustello, state representative for Pennsylvania's 11th District, showed up with several members of her team. Meanwhile, a contingent of Ryan Covert supporters showed up in matching shirts along with their candidate, who is running against Mustello in the primary.Local races aside, however, many present seemed focused on making larger races feel the impact of Butler County voices.“This is a very strong Republican county,” Lindsay said. “If not the strongest Republican county in the state. And this is an important election.”
