Gerlach declares GOP run for governor

Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Gerlach, survivor of several epic election battles in the Philadelphia suburbs, will give up his hard-won seat to run next year for governor of Pennsylvania.

After laying the groundwork for six months, Gerlach, 54, announced yesterday that he would enter what could become a crowded GOP primary field, also including state Attorney General Tom Corbett and former federal prosecutor Pat Meehan.

For a chance to be governor, Gerlach will surrender a position he struggled mightily to gain and hold in four elections since 2002 - battles in which he raised almost $10 million and fought off big advances being made by Democrats across the suburbs of cities in the Northeast. In the process, he gained a reputation for tenacity.

But some in politics speculated that Gerlach has had enough - that he fears eventually losing his seat and thinks he might actually have a better chance at higher office.

"That has nothing to do with my decision," Gerlach said. "I think I can be more effective and help more people, being governor, than in the position I hold now."

Gerlach declared his intentions via Facebook and Twitter, saying on his Facebook page: "I want to cut spending in Harrisburg, create jobs and make Pennsylvania a leader in America's energy independent future."

Later, in a hastily arranged conference call with reporters, Gerlach acknowledged that Corbett - twice elected to statewide office - is the probable Republican front-runner in the race to succeed Democratic Gov. Rendell, who cannot seek reelection. But he pointed out that, to date, he is the only Republican to commit himself to the race.

"I fully expect to be the nominee," he said.

Brian Nutt, a spokesman for Corbett, called it odd that Gerlach would declare his ambition for the state's highest office on a day when he spent most of his time in Washington.

"I find it somewhat interesting that he announced his candidacy for governor from inside the Washington Beltway," Nutt said.

Meehan, who served as U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania during the administration of President George W. Bush, responded to Gerlach's declaration with a statement from a political aide of his own, Virginia Davis.

"Pat Meehan welcomes Jim Gerlach into the race for governor," Davis said. "As Pat continues to build an exploratory committee for governor, he believes there is nothing more important to our democratic process than a strong slate of candidates from which the public can choose."

The three probable Democratic candidates are state Auditor General Jack Wagner, Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato, and Philadelphia businessman Tom Knox.

Gerlach's announcement ignited an immediate backfire among political figures in his Sixth Congressional District, which includes portions of Montgomery, Chester and Berks Counties.

Republican State Rep. Curt Schroder of Chester County announced that he would be a candidate to replace Gerlach.

"I have decided to enter this race to ensure that the values that built our country remain for our children, that we encourage the policies of entrepreneurism, limited government, and to preserve the economic future of our nation," Schroder said in a statement.

Democrat Doug Pike, a former member of The Inquirer's editorial board, said in the spring that he would run for the seat.

Gerlach's decision means that two of the fewer than half-dozen U.S. House seats reaching into the Philadelphia suburbs may be up for grabs. Democratic Rep. Joe Sestak has been working for months to line up a run for the U.S. Senate against Republican-turned-Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter.

Gerlach and Meehan face the shoulder-bumping problem of both hailing from the Philadelphia outskirts. Corbett, of the Pittsburgh suburbs, stands alone as a probable candidate from Western Pennsylvania.

Corbett easily won reelection as attorney general last year.

"Nobody has heard of Jim Gerlach in Western Pennsylvania," said Jon Delano, a Pittsburgh political analyst. "He has his work cut out for him."

Berwood Yost, director of the Center for Opinion Research at Franklin and Marshall College, said Gerlach would have to model himself on Tom Ridge, who was a little-known congressman from Erie County in 1994 when he ran for governor in a crowded GOP field - and won.

Gerlach, like Ridge, casts himself as a social moderate and fiscal conservative.

The question, Yost said, is whether the Republican Party in the state has become too conservative these days to elect a Gerlach - or a Ridge.

"At this early stage," Yost said, "I'd say his chances are probably as strong as many others'."

Age: 54; born Feb. 25, 1955, in Ellwood City, Pa.

Education: Bachelor's degree in political science, Dickinson College, 1977; J.D., Dickinson School of Law, 1980.

Career: Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 1991-94; Pennsylvania Senate, 1995-2002; U.S. House of Representatives, 2003-current.

Personal: Lives in Chester Springs. Married, three children and three stepchildren.

SOURCE: Associated Press

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