华盛顿——宾夕法尼亚州已经有了一大群想要加入美国参议院的民主党人:一个纹身很多的副州长，他看起来更像一个夜总会保镖，而不是哈佛大学的高级学位持有者。一位年轻的立法新贵试图成为该州第一位黑人和第一位公开的同性恋参议员。由一个强大的妇女团体支持的郊区麻醉师。
截至周五，一名前海军陆战队员因殴打引起全国关注唐纳德·特朗普去国会的选择和谁是总统乔·拜登曾说让他想起了自己已故的儿子。
民主党人认为他们在明年中期选举中赢得参议院席位的最佳机会之一是推翻即将退休的宾夕法尼亚州共和党参议员帕特·图米的席位。但首先，该党将不得不忍受一场潜在的激烈初选，大量引人注目的政治人物不会像今年其他引人注目的竞选那样，整齐地划分温和派和进步派。
“如果民主党要保持对参议院的控制，宾夕法尼亚州是一个至关重要的起点，”前民主党筹款人、全国民主党培训委员会创始人凯利·迪特里希(Kelly Dietrich)说，该委员会帮助为全国各地的竞选做准备。“无论谁赢得初选，都需要在全州范围内获胜，我认为有几个优秀、合格的候选人。”
拜登出生于宾夕法尼亚州，去年以大约8万张选票赢得了该州，在2016年意外失利后，重新夺回了民主党的关键摇摆州，这是特朗普入主白宫的关键。州政治更具争议性——两党都在权衡在州议会和美国参议院的进展。共和党参议员初选几乎和民主党一样拥挤，其中包括肖恩·帕内尔，他是前陆军游骑兵，也是小唐纳德·特朗普的朋友。
前联邦检察官、民主党众议员康纳·兰姆(Conor Lamb)现已正式开始竞选参议员。他在2018年的一次特别活动中获胜选举成为民主党人希望的象征，他们仍在为输给特朗普的白人工人阶级选民而感到震惊——并帮助预演了他的政党夺回众议院。
兰姆随后与拜登一起竞选，拜登将兰姆比作他的儿子博，后者于2015年死于脑瘤。这两人分享了民主党当权派倡导的许多中间派价值观——这帮助温和派赢得了今年几场备受关注的竞选，包括周二在俄亥俄州举行的特别国会初选。
兰姆已经接受了一些进步的立场，他说他将支持取消60票的最低门槛，以推进大多数主要的参议院立法，并支持有组织的劳工权利。前宾夕法尼亚州众议员帕特里克·墨菲是该组织的关键筹款人，他说，促进进步退伍军人的VoteVets是他的竞选背后。
但是兰姆有来自左翼的挑战者。副州长约翰·羁绊曼是一名身高6英尺8英寸(2米)的前市长，也是2016年落选的参议院候选人，他以进步民粹主义者的身份开辟了一条道路，并成为全国媒体的常客。
这场竞选还有31岁的州众议员马尔科姆·肯雅塔(Malcolm Kenyatta)参加，他得到了工作家庭党的支持，像费特曼一样，支持一些最高进步职位，包括每小时15美元的联邦最低工资和取消所有联邦学生债务。
在明年5月的民主党初选中，蒙哥马利县的专员委员会主席瓦尔·阿尔库什博士也在民主党的阵营中，蒙哥马利县是民主党富裕的郊区之一，那里的妇女已经带头远离共和党。Arkoosh得到了支持堕胎权利的女性候选人的支持。
首要问题可能更多地归结于地理因素，而不是意识形态。宾夕法尼亚州东西方的政治分歧就像美国橄榄球联盟钢人队和老鹰队球迷之间的鸿沟一样深。与此同时，费城和匹兹堡不再是该州唯一的民主党权力机构，因为郊区选民已经向左移动，并在最近的周期中大量出现。
37岁的兰姆来自宾夕法尼亚州西部，51岁的费德曼也是如此，他曾是贫困的布洛克的长期市长，布洛克是匹兹堡郊外的一个钢铁小镇，四分之三的居民是黑人。阿尔库什和肯雅塔从费城地区向东。
费城大都会区的选民占民主党初选总选民的50%，郊区的民主党人现在超过了居住在城市边缘的人。民主党在费城的高度集中将会给当地候选人带来提振——除非阿科什和肯雅塔分开投票。
这可能会让兰姆处于更好的位置。伊利县民主党主席吉姆·沃茨说，他所在的地区有一大片健康的郊区，而且轮廓适中，这可能会让兰姆在人口更多的郊区占据优势。
沃茨说:“对约翰·羁绊曼来说，情况变得有点复杂，他被大多数人认为是领先者。”他指出羁绊曼在竞选筹款方面的优势。这位副州长报告说，截至6月30日，他的竞选银行账户有300万美元，比任何其他候选人都多，包括兰姆当时手头的180万美元现金。
“兰姆的国会选区是一个艰难的选区，在许多方面更能代表全州的选民，”沃茨补充道。
兰姆区还包括更民主的匹兹堡北部阿勒格尼县郊区，同时包括比弗县，民主党在该县的登记人数超过共和党，尽管特朗普以18个百分点的优势拿下该县。
该地区丰富的天然气储量是民主党的一个分歧点。更多的自由派候选人倾向于远离以石油为基础的能源，而那些更温和的人，包括兰姆和拜登，支持该行业。
宾夕法尼亚州民调专家特里·麦当娜表示，兰姆在能源问题上的立场可能会得到支持特朗普的民主党人的支持。
“这些保守的蓝领民主党人在文化上并不自由。不要碰他们的枪，”麦当娜说。"但他们可能会支持兰姆的天然气立场."
不过，那不是一个特别大的游泳池。美联社VoteCast对全州选民的调查显示，2020年支持拜登的宾夕法尼亚州选民中，有8%的人表示，他们在2016年支持特朗普。
阿尔库什的家乡蒙哥马利县民主党主席乔·福斯特(Joe Foster)说，更紧迫的问题可能是，一个更温和的候选人能否吸引更年轻的民主党人，这些人近年来在郊区的排名有所上升。
兰姆在枪支控制上的立场——他支持扩大枪支购买的背景调查，但表示新的限制是不必要的——可能不会让年轻选民感到惊讶。他个人也反对堕胎，但支持保留堕胎权。兰姆还反对民主党人南希·佩洛西在2019年当选众议院议长。
“他投票反对南希·佩洛西，”福斯特说，“这里有人记得这一点。”
Packed Democratic primary looms for Pennsylvania Senate seat
WASHINGTON -- Pennsylvania already had a full lineup of Democrats wanting to join the U.S. Senate: A heavily tattooed lieutenant governor who looks more like a nightclub bouncer than the holder of an advanced degree from Harvard. A young upstart in the Legislature trying to become the state's first Black and first openly gay senator. A suburban anesthesiologist endorsed by a powerful women’s group.
And, as of Friday, a former Marine who drew national attention by beatingDonald Trump’s choice to get to Congress and whom PresidentJoe Bidenonce said reminds him of his late son.
Democrats see one of their best chances to gain ground in the Senate during next year's midterms as flipping the seat of retiring Republican Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey. But first the party will have to endure a potentially bruising primary with a bumper crop of compelling political figures who don't break neatly down along the moderates-versus-progressives divide that has defined other high-profile races this year.
“Pennsylvania is a critical pickup if Democrats are going to maintain control of the Senate,” said Kelly Dietrich, a former Democratic fundraiser and founder of the National Democratic Training Committee, which helps prepare candidates for races around the country. “Whoever wins the primary needs to be viable winning statewide, and I think there are several good, qualified candidates.”
Biden was born in Pennsylvania and won it by about 80,000 votes last year, reclaiming the key swing state for Democrats after a surprising 2016 loss was key in sending Trump to the White House. State politics has been even more contested — with both parties trading off advances in the statehouse and in the U.S. Senate. The Republican senatorial primary is almost as packed as the Democrats' and includes Sean Parnell, a former Army Ranger and friend of Donald Trump Jr.'s.
Democratic Rep. Conor Lamb, a former federal prosecutor, has now formally kicked off his senatorial run. His victory in a 2018 specialelectionbecame a symbol of hope for Democrats who were still reeling from losing white working-class voters to Trump — and helped preview his party's takeback of the House.
Lamb campaigned then with Biden, who likened Lamb to his son Beau, who died of a brain tumor in 2015. The pair share many of the centrist values championed by the Democratic establishment — which has helped moderates win several much-watched races this year, including Tuesday's special congressional primary in Ohio.
Lamb has embraced some progressive positions, saying he’d back scrapping the 60-vote minimum threshold to advance most major Senate legislation and support organized labor rights. VoteVets, which promotes progressive veterans, is behind his bid, according to former Pennsylvania Rep. Patrick Murphy, who is a key fundraiser for the group.
But Lamb has challengers from the left. Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, a 6-foot-8 (2-meter-tall) former mayor and unsuccessful 2016 Senate candidate, has staked out a lane as a progressive populist and made himself a national media regular.
The race also features 31-year-old state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, who has been endorsed by the Working Families Party and, like Fetterman, supports some top progressive positions, including a $15-per-hour federal minimum wage and canceling all federal student debt.
Also in the Democratic field for next May's primary is Dr. Val Arkoosh, chair of the board of commissioners in Montgomery County, one of the well-off Democratic suburbs where women have led the drive away from the Republican Party. Arkoosh has been endorsed by EMILY’s List, which promotes female candidates who support abortion rights.
The primary could come down to geography more than ideology. The east-west political divide in Pennsylvania runs as deep as the chasm between fans of the NFL's Steelers and Eagles. Meanwhile, the cities of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are no longer the only Democratic powerhouses in the state as suburban voters have moved to the left and shown up in big numbers during recent cycles.
Lamb, 37, hails from western Pennsylvania, as does the 51-year-old Fetterman, the former, longtime mayor of impoverished Braddock, a tiny steel town just outside Pittsburgh where three-fourths of the residents are Black. Arkoosh and Kenyatta are from the Philadelphia area to the east.
Voters in the Philadelphia metropolitan area make up 50% of the overall Democratic primary electorate, and suburban Democrats now outnumber those living in the city limits. That high concentration of Democrats around Philadelphia would give local candidates a boost — unless Arkoosh and Kenyatta split that vote.
The could leave Lamb in a better position. His district, with a healthy swath of suburbs and a moderate profile, could give Lamb an edge in the more populous suburbs, said Erie County Democratic Party Chair Jim Wertz.
“It becomes a bit more complicated for John Fetterman, who by most accounts would be considered a front-runner,” Wertz said, noting Fetterman's campaign fundraising advantage. The lieutenant governor reported having a campaign bank account with $3 million as of June 30, more than any other candidate, including the $1.8 million in cash on hand Lamb had then.
“Lamb’s congressional district is a tough district and in many ways a bit more representative of the statewide electorate,” Wertz added.
Lamb’s district also includes the more Democratic northern Pittsburgh suburbs of Allegheny County while encompassing Beaver County, where Democratic registration tops Republicans’, though Trump carried the county by a commanding 18 percentage points.
The area’s rich natural gas reserves are a point of Democratic division. More liberal candidates lean away from petroleum-based energy sources, and those who are more moderate, including Lamb and Biden, support the industry.
Pennsylvania pollster Terry Madonna said Lamb's position on energy could draw support from pro-Trump Democrats.
“These conservative, blue-collar Democrats are not culturally liberal. Don’t touch their guns," Madonna said. "But they may support Lamb for his natural gas stance.”
That's not a terribly large pool, though. Eight percent of Pennsylvania voters who backed Biden in 2020 said they supported Trump in 2016, according to an AP VoteCast survey of statewide voters.
The more pressing question may be whether a candidate with a more moderate profile can appeal to younger Democrats, whose ranks have swelled in the suburbs in recent years, said Joe Foster, the Democratic Party chair for Montgomery County, Arkoosh's home turf.
Lamb's position on gun control — he supports expanded background checks for gun purchases but has said new restrictions are unnecessary — may not wow younger voters. He also personally opposes abortion but supports keeping the right to the procedure in place. And Lamb also opposed Democrat Nancy Pelosi's election as House speaker in 2019.
“He voted against Nancy Pelosi," Foster said, “and there are people here who remember that.”
