In a little over one year from now, the country will be flocking back to the polls for the pivotal 2022 midterm elections.
All eyes will be on Pennsylvania, as the battleground state could prove to be the deciding factor in whether the Democrats can retain their hold of the U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C., or the Republicans will take back control.
Two-term Republican Senator Pat Toomey confirmed the rumors of his pending retirement at the end of his current term in early October of 2020. Toomey is a staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump and so the move casts a major hit to the GOP’s plan to stay competitive statewide in Pennsylvania, which saw President Joe Biden win against incumbent President Trump by just over 80,000 votes in the 2020 November General Election.
When asked about his decision to retire following his current term, Toomey said, “I’ve made a decision, it’s not going to change, and I want everybody to know.”
He also stated that he is “cautiously optimistic” about his party’s chances to hold his seat.
Former President Donald Trump has wasted no time throwing his weight into the high-profile Senate race, endorsing Sean Parnell, an Army veteran who lost his 2020 US House bid to Rep. Connor Lamb (D-PA 17th District).
However, Parnell has received backlash from fellow Republican Senate candidate, Businessman Jeff Bartos, who called Parnell “unelectable” and is deeply troubled by previous statements and actions Parnell has made towards women.
Other notable Republican candidates for Senate include political commentator Kathy Barnette and former Ambassador to Denmark and Economic Advisory Council Member Carla Sands. Sands previously served under Trump from Dec. 2017 to Jan. 2021.
On the other side of the aisle, the Democratic Party of Pennsylvania is “extremely optimistic” about their chances to send another Democratic Senator to the U.S. Capitol. As of now, four names top the power-rankings to become the Democratic nominee for the US Senate in 2022.
Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman, who is widely leading in early fundraising and spending numbers, is a progressive who commonly vocalizes his support for legalizing marijuana, universal healthcare and vehemently opposes the filibuster. Fetterman has the name recognition throughout the Commonwealth to aid his campaign moving forward to next November.
Another top democratic contender, Representative Conor Lamb (D-PA 17th district), leads as the party’s most centrist candidate. Representing constituents from north and west of Pittsburgh, Lamb is no stranger to conservative-leaning ideas.
Lamb has recently drawn criticism from the more progressive members of his party for his defense of hydraulic fracking, an oil and gas development process that has been proven to cause immense harm to the environment if not strictly regulated. Lt. Governor John Fetterman, a proclaimed progressive, also supports hydraulic fracking.
State Representative Malcolm Kenyatta is also among the top contenders for the Democratic nomination next November. A rising star within the Democratic Party, Kenyatta, who represents northern Philadelphia, is running a grassroots progressive campaign on the back of the social justice movement.
If elected, at just 31 years of age, Kenyatta would be the youngest member of the United States Senate.
Val Arkoosh, a former physician and now Chair of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners, rounds out the list of notable contenders for the Democratic nomination. Being a former doctor, Arkoosh heavily centers her campaign around health care. An Affordable Care Act reformist, and strong advocate for the rights to an abortion, Arkoosh has attracted the endorsement of EMILY’s List, the largest PAC which seeks to help elect pro-choice women into office. If elected, Arkoosh would become the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from the state of Pennsylvania.
With inner-party conflict on the Republican side, and a vastly diverse ideological field on the Democratic side, both vying for an open-seat, Cook Political Report places the 2022 Pennsylvania US Senate race at the “center of the 2022 Senate map.”
Voters in Pennsylvania, and across the country, will vote in the midterm election on Nov. 8 of 2022, in what will be the first major national test for the Biden administration. Until then, voters are expected to return to the polls on Nov. 2 for the upcoming election.
