The Democratic Jewish Outreach Pennsylvania (DJOP) today announced its endorsement of Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, Democrat candidate for the US House of Representatives from the state’s 10th Congressional District.
The district is in Central Pennsylvania and covers Dauphin County, including Harrisburg, and parts of York and Cumberland Counties.
Jill Zipin, Chair of DOJP’s Steering Committee, said the committee “enthusiastically endorses DePasquale because of his experience in government, because he best reflects the Jewish values and progressive policies of DJOP, and because this is a winnable seat for Democrats.”
Zipin pointed to the Washington Post’s’ reference to PA’s 10th District as being one of the top 10 competitive races in Congressional elections in 2020. The Republican incumbent, Scott Perry, prevailed in 2018 in the second-closest US House race in the state.
Perry is known as a far right-winger who has accused the news media of exaggerating the 2017 damage of Hurricane Maria to Puerto Rico. He also spread the false theory that ISIS was behind the 2018 mass murder shooting in Las Vegas, when law enforcement officials say that the shooting was conducted by a lone gunman with no ISIS affiliation. Perry is listed by the Washington Post as holding the seventh most vulnerable seat in the US House of Representatives, and the Cook Report rates him as the only Republican sitting in what it calls a “Toss Up” district.
DePasquale was raised in a working-class family and worked to help cover the costs of medical care for his brother, Anthony, who eventually lost his battle with Muscular Dystrophy.
DePasquale went on to graduate from the College of Wooster, to earn his graduate degree from the University of Pittsburgh and his law degree from the Widener School of Law.
“Gene DePasquale represents our best chance to replace an ardent Trump supporter with a Democrat who is proud to align himself with the DJOP agenda, including budget priorities, gun safety, women’s reproductive rights, the environment and integrity in government,” Zipin said. “He will be a high-quality candidate who can win in the 10th District in a Presidential election year.”
The Steering Committee of DJOP consists of David S. Broida, William Epstein, Brett Goldman, Dina Lichtman, Rabbi Seymour Rosenbloom, Nina Rosenthal, Burt Siegel and Zipin.