Labor day kicks off local and state races that some say are more important than ever

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Labor Day is the traditional start of the campaign season with the general election just nine weeks away. And there’s more on the ballot than you might think.

Candidates were out in force on Monday, marching in Pittsburgh’s Labor Day Parade but most have been working hard for months to win votes that will start to be cast by mail at the end of this month.

“Campaigns are much longer today than they’ve ever been,” said Democratic political strategist Mike Mikus. 

Political analysts say Labor Day is when the public begins to take notice of what is at stake in the upcoming election and this off-year election has more at stake than ever.

Statewide, voters will elect a new state Supreme Court justice who will rule on abortion rights, political gerrymandering, educational equity and the environment.

In western Pennsylvania, there are some hotly contested races for county commissioners, mostly controlled by Republicans but Democrats see a chance for a pickup in a few, like Lawrence and Washington counties. 

Allegheny County residents will elect a new county chief executive, choosing between Democrat Sara Innamorato and Republican Joe Rockey.

“It’s so important. We do have two very different candidates here,” said Erin Koper, the chair of the Allegheny County Council of Republican Women. 

One race getting lots of attention is for Allegheny County district attorney where lifelong Democrat Stephen Zappala is running on the Republican ticket against Matt Dugan, the Democrat who beat him in the primary.

“Steve Zappala, for him to win, is going to have to keep a number of Democrats with him – people that voted for him in the primary,” Mikus said.

Mike Mikus, who worked in Zappala’s primary campaign but is not working for him now, says this race is competitive because it’s a race between two Democrats with independents and Republicans now permitted to vote in the general.

Dugan, who was the county’s chief public defender and served on the Moon Area School Board, has been funded by liberal billionaire George Soros, but Mike Cmar, chair of the Findlay Democrats, doesn’t think that matters since Dugan can attract suburban voters.

“Tell them that he shares the same values as them, that he’s not just a person who is backed by George Soros, but he moved to the suburbs,” Cmar said. 

Republican insiders say Zappala should win Republicans because they cannot vote for a George Soros-funded candidate.

“If you look at other cities who have elected progressive DAs and you just follow with where these cities like Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, San Francisco – you can see that they’re just not tough enough on crime,” Koper said. 

In addition to these visible races for the Supreme Court, county commission, county executive and district attorney, voters will also be electing the people who raise your taxes perhaps the most — municipal officials and school directors.  

Jon Delano

Jon Delano is a familiar face on KDKA, having been the station’s political analyst since 1994. In September 2001, Jon joined KDKA full time as the Money & Politics Editor and this region’s only political analyst who covers national and local issues that affect hometown residents.