The contest to fill the seat previously held by the late Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) is quickly shaping up as yet another special election battle whose implications are likely to stretch far beyond one congressional district.

Analysts say the Pennsylvania 12th District battle might provide the clearest sign to date of the kind of political climate facing the two parties in November and represents exactly the kind of battleground on which much of the 2012 election will be fought.

“It is a national race because the voters in this district that used to be called Reagan Democrats — nowadays they’re called independents or conservative Democrats — these are the voters that make up the difference in a national election,” said Joseph DiSarro, chair of the political science department at the Washington and Jefferson College. “This is a district that will set the direction of the parties in the future.”

Read the entire New York Times story here.

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 27th, 2010 at 5:14 pm and is filed under PA Reports, PoliticsPA Reports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.