Photo by: Phuooc Huy Nguyen
The lieutenant governor of the state of Pennsylvania has declared his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for the Senate seat currently held by Sen. Pat Toomey. Toomey is retiring from the Senate seat in 2022.
John Fetterman, the current lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania and the former mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania is vying for the open U.S. Senate seat in 2022.
Lt. Gov. Fetterman’s, voting record, and political positions align with the progressive left-wing of the Democratic Party. Fetterman supports the legalization and decriminalization of marijuana, massive campaign finance reform and a single-payer healthcare system. The main pushback to his candidacy is can he win one of the most politically divided states in America.
Pennsylvania is considered by many as a battleground state. This means that the statewide races are very close and both Democrats and Republicans have a likely chance of winning the state. “John Fetterman has a more limited cross-over appeal than the more moderate of Democrats would. However name recognition could end up putting him over-the-top,” Dr. Courtney Smith, political science professor, said. Fetterman has stated before how he has been able to win over voters and have bipartisan support in what he does.
When Fetterman was the mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania, which is a suburb located 10 miles north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, there was a lot of work that had to be done. The town was negatively impacted due to steel industries relocating out of Western Pennsylvania, which brought poverty, unemployment and crime. Fetterman brought a new culture and environment to the town. He brought in more renewable plants overseeing more renewable energy plants and started up social programs, which ultimately brought down the crime rate.
When LT. Gov. Fetterman was still the mayor of Braddock, he ran in the Democratic Senatorial primary in 2016, which ultimately failed. He was not as nearly popular then as he is now. When he was elected as the lieutenant governor in 2018, he finally had notoriety. “One of the benefits of being the lieutenant governor is name recognition; more people know who he is now than when he ran in 2016 as a mayor,” Smith said. He is most known for his outspoken advocacy for the decriminalization and legalization of marijuana. He has been the driving force in pushing Gov. Wolf towards legislation that would decriminalize and legalize it.
Twitter is where Fetterman’s claim to fame factors in. He is extremely active and stays up with trends on Twitter most notably, The Wawa vs. Sheetz debate. The LT. Gov. usually will post statistics that are in favor of the legalization of marijuana, LGBTQ+ rights and immigration. Fetterman due to his presence on social media has gained a massive following base consisting mostly of Pennsylvanians ages 18-30.
Many Pennsylvania Republicans have a negative viewpoint on the Wolf Administration, especially in regards to the state’s health restrictions due to the pandemic. So how will Fetterman be able to gain independent votes if he does win the Democratic nomination for the senate? Well, despite being labeled as a progressive Democrat, Fetterman has been able to reach across the aisle and establish bipartisanship. He started the COVID relief fund with his opponent that he ran against in the 2018 Lieutenant Gubernatorial Election. He has also influenced state Republicans on criminal justice reform and decriminalizing marijuana.
While we are around a year removed from the Democratic primary, Fetterman is starting his campaign for the 2022 Democratic nomination for Pennsylvania’s open United States Senate seat.
