Comitta looks to be in good shape on 156th recount

Will there be a local price for GOP overreach? By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times So much for putting the feet up and enjoying the holiday season before wading back into this column in 2017 — so consider it a pre-holiday gift (or curse) — as news makes a surprise return needed. While the last provisional ballots have to be counted, it appears that Carolyn Comitta has pulled off a narrow win...

Endorsements: Maxwell, Truitt and Rzucidlo for State House

If you think everything in our commonwealth is fine — you have simple choices in Tuesday’s state legislative elections. Returning your local representative will continue the policy and politics we’ve seen for a number of years now. For the rest of us, who see the state lurching from financial crisis to financial crisis, see alleged “fiscal conservatives” run up the state’s credit card...

Things heating up in final days of election season

With 10 to go, intensity picks up; pension efforts fail again By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Well, we’re getting down to the end of it, just 10 more days and Election 2016 will in the history books. And make no mistake, it will be one for the history books. Or maybe, the horror section. And no, don’t ask me to email it to you. From filing what appear to be criminal charges against a state...

Democrats play their Trump card and hard

Ads start to go negative, too, shockingly By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Last week, in this space I noted that Democratic candidates would be looking to staple their Republican opponents to GOP presidential nominee Donald J. Trump. Based on a flurry of TV ads and mailers I’ve seen this week, I had it mostly right, except maybe the implement: Democrats are using a nail gun, and one has to wonder...

The Trumpocalypse hits home

Meanwhile, local candidates gather and talk issues thoughtfully By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Well, that was a week to be proud of in politics, right? As Donald Trump continues to loom over the election of down ballot candidates much as he did over Hillary Clinton during last Sunday night’s town hall forum — frankly, all it needed was slasher movie music to make it perfect — it seems...

The Times endorsements 2014: State Representative

Today, The Times, continues our formal endorsements of candidates, with six state Representative races today. We did not choose to make endorsements in every state house district in the county, in part as they are not primary coverage areas as yet, or we did not feel an endorsement was appropriate. Our endorsements started yesterday with Congressional candidates and wraps up with state Senate...

Risk, reward in running Ross in the 158th

Let’s just say the race got a lot more complicated By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times So Cuyler Walker is out, and it appears that Chris Ross is in. Let us set aside the circumstances for moment, as complicated and messy as they are, and look at the situation in the 158th District from a purely political standpoint. Obviously, assuming that Ross is the choice Sunday night — and every single...

Numbers, both in polls and finance reports tell a story

While Corbett’s numbers suggest a Democratic opportunity, can they raise enough $$ to take advantage? By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Not to beat a dead horse, but there are even more bad poll numbers this week to make even the stoutest of Republicans more than a tad worried about not just the fate of Gov. Tom Corbett, but whether an electoral tsunami could hurt down-ballot candidates,...

Corbett faces trouble from his own party

Legislators annoyed by, but not scared by, Gov.’s budget line-item veto By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Yogi Berra, the baseball legend and armchair philosopher once said, “when you get to a fork in the road, take it.” Based on his action last week, Gov. Tom Corbett appears not to have taken this sage advice — and crashed right into the Burma Shave billboard located at the fork in...

Democrats step up in legislative races

GOP faces opposition in all but two races in Nov. elections By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Petition season is over, and unless there are some write-in candidates, we know who will appear on the May primary ballots. And, although I took the Democrats to task for seeming to have a shortage of candidates, they’ve managed to challenge all but two legislative races in Chester County. Yes, there...