Murtha defeats Mascara
Buoyed by pulling in about 90 percent of the vote in four holdover counties from his old district, U.S. Rep. John Murtha (D-Johnstown) cruised to victory over U.S. Rep. Frank Mascara (D-Charleroi) in Tuesday’s Democrat primary in the 12th Congressional District. Mascara got roughly 70 percent of the vote in the Washington and Greene county portions of the new district, where he had the advantage of being the incumbent. But in Fayette County, which both men had previously represented, the split was practically 50-50, with Murtha holding a slight edge.
Unofficial and incomplete totals late Tuesday night showed Murtha capturing nearly 61 percent of the vote in the nine-county district. Murtha had 33,737 votes to Mascara’s 21,840.
But it was the high margins of lead for Murtha – 92 percent in his home county of Cambria, 89 percent in Armstrong, 93 percent in Indiana and 92.5 percent in Somerset – that made it a foregone conclusion that he would handily win his face-off with Mascara.
Mascara easily took Greene County and the portion of his home county of Washington that remained in the new 12th District, but he didn’t carry them with near the plurality that Murtha got in his home base.
Murtha also was pulling 70 percent of the vote in the Westmoreland County portion of the district, and was getting nearly 77 percent in the Allegheny County portion. Murtha’s apparent win was well received by two of his biggest Fayette backers, Democrat Party Chairman Fred L. Lebder and county Commissioner Sean M. Cavanagh.
“We knew it was going to be a tough race,” said Lebder, noting that Murtha was running in a lot of Fayette territory for the first time. “We were fighting and more or less forging ground. We had to go in and dig out the votes and we were successful doing that.”
Lebder, who backed Murtha “1,000 percent,” said his win will reap huge benefits to the county in the immediate future.
“It puts us in excellent position. There will be an economic growth – and this is not political talk because it’s over – within the next five years. It’s going to be a rebirth in Fayette County, jobs that we never thought we would get in Fayette County. They’re going to be here,” said Lebder.
“One of the world’s big defense programs is going to be centered here. You’re seeing it unfold (already). And it’s real. I’ve been a part of that ever since I’ve been out of office (in 1995).”
Lebder also pontificated that if Democrats regain control of the House, Murtha becomes chairman of House defense committee, which “spends more money than 75 percent of the countries in the world do.”
Cavanagh said that the Murtha-Mascara race remained a “neck-and-neck” affair with final totals not yet in. Nonetheless, he was pleased that Murtha more than held his own in Fayette areas previously represented by Mascara.
“Forty percent (for Murtha) would have been encouraging, but a victory is outstanding. To beat an incumbent on his own turf is a tremendous victory,” said Cavanagh. “I think a big reason for the victory is the township supervisors who came out (for Murtha) all over Fayette County. They united. Bob Schiffbauer (of South Union Township) was a big part of that, along with George Bozak of Franklin Township.”
Regarding the future, Cavanagh said, “John Murtha’s going to bring home the bacon to Fayette County. He’s the right guy, with seniority and clout, and I have faith that he’s going to deliver for Fayette County in a big way. I talked to Murtha and he was very pleased.”
Fayette County Commission Chairman Vincent A. Vicites, who supported Mascara, said he was pleased with Mascara’s showing in Fayette. Vicites added that he was proud to stand by Mascara out of loyalty.
“I think Frank Mascara got a good vote in the county. He worked real hard and I helped him in this race. He’s my friend. I stand by my friends and I’m proud of Frank Mascara. He’s a good man,” said Vicites.
“He was outspent 4-to-1. He worked hard. Really, I think the vote in Fayette County was a good one, considering all the obstacles there were to overcome. There was a lot of hurdles to jump and I think he ran his hardest and did the best that he could.”
Incomplete returns by county were:
Allegheny – Murtha 442, Mascara 135; Armstrong – Murtha 3,597, Mascara 443; Cambria, Murtha 10,132, Mascara 840; Fayette – Murtha, 6,886, Mascara 6,691; Greene – Murtha 1,763; Mascara 3,955; Indiana – Murtha 961; Mascara 67; Somerset – Murtha 907, Mascara 737; Washington – Murtha 2,630, Mascara 6,192; Westmoreland – Murtha 6,419, Mascara 2,780.