Candidates file to run in Pa. primary

HARRISBURG - Candidates for scores of public offices ranging from the state legislature to the presidency lined up to file petitions Tuesday to qualify for the Pennsylvania ballot.

The filings set the stage for the state's April 24 primary. They also confirm expectations of nomination fights for U.S. Senate, state attorney general and auditor general, and several congressional districts.

Tuesday was the deadline for all offices except the Legislature, which has two extra days this year.

President Obama's reelection campaign filed its petitions on time, as did four of his prospective Republican challengers - former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, state elections officials said.

Gingrich's campaign gathered more than 5,000 signatures, more than double the 2,000 that state law requires for presidential candidates, said Charles Gerow, the state campaign chairman for the former House speaker.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Casey filed to run for a second term, while at least four Republicans positioned themselves for a primary showdown that will decide who takes him on: entrepreneur and party-backed candidate Steve Welch, former coal industry executive Tom Smith, former State Rep. Sam Rohrer, and lawyer Mark Scaringi.

Primary contests also were shaping up in two soon-to-be-vacant statewide row offices.

For attorney general, former Lackawanna County prosecutor Kathleen Kane and former U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy filed to compete for the Democratic nomination. Cumberland County District Attorney David Freed was the only Republican to file for the office.

For auditor general, party-endorsed State Rep. John Maher of Allegheny County and banking lobbyist Frank Pinto filed for the GOP nomination, according to state and party officials. State Rep. Eugene DePasquale of York County was the only Democrat to file.

State Treasurer Rob McCord, a Democrat, filed to run for a second term. Washington County Commissioner Diana Irey Vaughan was the only Republican to file for the post.

Eighteen U.S. House incumbents filed petitions, including two Democrats - Reps. Jason Altmire and Mark Critz - who will be forced by the redistricting law to run against each other in the newly reshaped 12th District.

Pennsylvania's congressional delegation lost one seat, leaving a total of 18, as part of the latest round of redistricting because of slower-than-average population growth reflected in the 2010 census.

Candidates for 203 House seats and 25 Senate seats in the Legislature were given two extra days - until Thursday - to file petitions this year. A Jan. 25 state Supreme Court ruling invalidating the legislative redistricting plan was issued after candidates had begun circulating petitions based on the revamped district boundaries.