Newcomer Konchar challenges Mustello
One of the local election races Butler County residents will keep a close eye on is in the state House 11th District, where Republican Rep. Marci Mustello is aiming to hold on to her seat and win a two-year term against Libertarian challenger and Butler County business owner Justin Konchar.
Mustello entered political office in 2019 after defeating Democratic candidate Samuel Doctor in a special election for the 11th District seat. She won subsequent elections for the seat in 2020 and 2022, the latter unopposed.
Prior to that, she served as an assistant to U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-16th, from 2011 to 2019, and also has served as board president of the Butler County Humane Society.
Mustello continues to focus her campaign on economic issues, such as revitalizing Pennsylvania’s economy, reducing inflation, and keeping the state government budget to a minimum. Notably, she was one of the House members who voted against this year’s state budget, which was signed into law July 11.
“I have and will continue to be supportive of legislation that will reduce the gasoline tax, cut taxes on small businesses, increase accessibility to natural gas drilling, and reduce inflation that is harming our families,” Mustello told the Butler Eagle. “I will continue to work to restore fiscal sanity to Harrisburg, create an environment for economic growth in Butler County, and work with our local, county and federal partners to provide the service and representation that my constituents deserve.”
In addition, Mustello has said that she is focusing on finding concrete ways to solve Pennsylvania’s drug problems.
“I have worked extensively with our Butler County elected officials in order to provide state resources to combat all drug issues in our region,” Mustello said. “I support legislation that would place mandatory minimums on drug dealers while providing funds for rehabilitation centers to move people from addiction to productive members of society.”
Her opponent in the Nov. 5 election, Konchar, a Libertarian candidate, is entering the political sphere for the first time. A resident of Lyndora, Konchar is owner of the tabletop board game maker Dungeons & Vanners.
“I've always been vocally political and had given thought to running, but I'm ponderous by nature. I'm not self-righteous,” Konchar told the Butler Eagle. “I wanted to make sure I had solid ideas before running. I had to have something new to add to political discourse.”
Like Mustello, Konchar also is focused on making the economy work for Butler County residents. His campaign slogan is “Less Taxes, Less Bull(expletive).”
“I don't think it's too controversial to say we have a lot of laws and regulations that don't make sense and need to be removed,” Konchar said. “I'm really focused on removing the roadblocks in place for home ownership and entrepreneurship. I want people to invest in their communities and for everyone to feel invested in their community’s well-being.”
To achieve his aim of revitalizing the area’s economy, he has proposed policies such as a “tiny home protection act,” which would eliminate or reduce minimum lot size and square footage requirements for homeowners, and a “home business act,” which would allow residents to set up businesses in residential zones as long as they live on the property.
Other key planks of Konchar’s platform are decriminalizing marijuana and abolishing the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board.
“I want to make sure regular people can open their own pot shops,” Konchar said. “No $300,000 licenses or similarly ridiculous requirements.”
While the two candidates share many campaign goals, Konchar clarified that his views are not one-to-one with Mustello’s.
“On economic issues, I'm definitely distinct from both major parties and even my own. You could say I have left-wing goals with right-wing methods. I want greater economic equality, but I disagree with the left on how that's done,” Konchar said. “I really don't want to bad-mouth Marci too much, but at the end of the day, she's neocon pushing policies by moneyed interests. I'm not taking any money from big business. I am writing and have written my own bills.”
Of Konchar, Mustello said, “I am unsure of Mr. Konchar’s political positions, but our focus will continue to represent the values of the 11th legislative district.”
The state House’s 11th District includes the southeastern portion of Butler County, namely Butler, Chicora, East Butler and Saxonburg, and the townships of Buffalo, Butler, Clearfield, Clinton, Donegal, Jefferson, Oakland, Summit and Winfield.
