May 25, 2014 5 min read

This past Tuesday’s primary was probably one of the least suspenseful elections in recent memory.

In all the local contests, candidates jumped out to early leads and padded their margins of victory as the night went on. It was the same in the race for the Democratic Party’s nomination for governor, as Tom Wolf sped out to a big lead early and never was seriously challenged.

However, there should be plenty of drama ahead in the November general election, particularly in the race for governor. While Republican incumbent Tom Corbett has fared poorly in the polls so far, there’s little doubt that he’ll be a formidable foe for Wolf this fall.

For one thing, Corbett will have plenty of money to spend, and he’ll be sure to use it in negative ads against Wolf. That strategy didn’t work in the primary, but Pennsylvania Democrats better hope that Wolf doesn’t have any skeletons in his closet, because Corbett will find them, if they exist, and exploit them to his fullest advantage.

Another race that should provide plenty of drama is much closer to home in the 32nd District of the state Senate, which includes all of Fayette and Somerset counties, in addition to a portion of Westmoreland County.

There, state Rep. Deberah Kula, D-North Union Township, fresh off her convincing victory over Harry Fike in the Democratic Party primary, will battle Bullskin Township businessman Pat Stefano who was unopposed in the Republican Party primary.

In fact, this could be one of the most significant local elections in quite some time, with control of the state Senate possibly hanging in the balance.

Right now, Republicans control the chamber by a 27-23 margin. There are 25 seats up for re-election this fall but only a handful are considered competitive, mainly in southeastern Pennsylvania, where Democrats are hoping to win several seats that have been occupied by Republicans in recent years.

The Republicans have targeted the 32nd District, mainly because of President Barack Obama’s poor showing there last fall. Throw in the fact that there’s no incumbent, and the GOP is smelling blood in the water. They have already vowed to spend as much money as necessary to win the seat.

But Democrats can’t afford to lose the seat, particularly if they can win some of those state Senate races outside Philadelphia. You can bet the Democrats will spare no expense to keep the seat from going Republican.

Controlling the Senate will be even more important to Democrats if Wolf beats Corbett. With the governor’s mansion and the state Senate under their control, Democrats would be able to rule Harrisburg for the first time in years.

So, it could come down to the winner of the Kula-Stefano race determining who controls the state Senate and with that, the direction of the commonwealth. That’s some pretty heady stuff, but it could happen.

With a huge edge in voter registration numbers, it will be crucial for Kula to get the full support of all Democrats. If that happens, Kula could cruise to an easy victory. But if Stefano is able to attract some Democrats along with Independents and a solid block of Republicans, he could upset Kula.

It could come down to what happens, with Fike’s supporters. Will they remain loyal Democrats and cast their ballots for Kula, or will they toss aside their party allegiances and back Stefano.

Of particular interest will be the stance taken by state Rep. Tim Mahoney, D-South Union Township. Unopposed on both sides in his re-election to the 51st District of the state House of Representatives, Mahoney was a strong supporter of Fike’s campaign. Mahoney never gave any public reason for his opposition to Kula, but there has been some speculation that he wanted to run for the Senate only to find that she had beaten him to the punch.

Can Mahoney put any animosity he has toward Kula aside and support her for the good of the party? Or is so upset that he can’t find it within himself to back Kula?

The problem for Mahoney is that anything less than full support could spell trouble for him in Harrisburg with his fellow Democrats. With so much at stake, they could make life very difficult for Mahoney if he doesn’t support Kula. He could very well be blamed for costing Kula the election if she loses, no matter what really happens. So, Mahoney might be forced into giving Kula his full backing, if he wants to be anything more than a figurehead in his next term.

All signs point to a very interesting campaign this fall, full of drama and intrigue. It could go down as one of the biggest races in the history of Fayette County.

Mark O’Keefe is the editorial page editor of the Herald-Standard. He can be reached by email at mokeefe@heraldstandard.com, or by phone at 724-439-7569.