Phil Heron, a columnist with the Delaware County Times, reports that one name can be crossed off the list of potential Democratic candidates for governor of Pennsylvania next year:
Democratic U.S. Sen. Robert P. Casey Jr., who many people thought would make a run against struggling incumbent Tom Corbett, is out.
This isn’t that surprising, as Casey just won reelection last year; if he had any interest in running for governor, why sign on for another six-year term?
Corbett’s poll numbers are pretty weak at this point. Ironically, the move that has gotten him the most grief on the national stage — a lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association over the penalties imposed upon Penn State University after the Sandusky scandal — is playing well in the state; 52 percent of Pennsylvania voters support his lawsuit against the NCAA and just 34 percent oppose it. But when it comes to his overall job performance, only 38 percent approve, 52 percent disapprove.
Heron writes:
The move by Casey clears the stage for several Democrats to vie for the nomination.The leader in the clubhouse would seem to be state Treasurer Rob McCord. He easily won re-election and has not exactly made it a secret that he has higher goals.
But the dark horse in all this is former 7th District Congressman Joe Sestak. After stunning his own party with a primary win over longtime Sen. Arlen Specter, the Delco pol lost a tight race to Pat Toomey. But Sestak has never really stopped running. He’s visited just about every part of the state, and has been pushing his presence in the western part of the state by teaching a few classes at Carnegie Mellon University.
It’s not much of a secret that Sestak will wind up running for something again.