By Alex Roarty
PoliticsPA Staff Writer
roarty@politicspa.com
UPDATED: Knox Campaign Mananger Josh Morrow cast doubt on news his candidate is dropping out of the race in an e-mail to PoliticsPA late Wednesday night.
Asked about the report, Morrow responded “rumor and conjecture.”
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Capitolwire reported Wednesday night (subscription only) that Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Knox might drop out of the race for governor after meeting with primary rival Dan Onorato Thursday morning in Philadelphia.
The news service said the two candidates already met Monday, with Knox telling Onorato he would likely drop out of the race. If he follows through Thursday, sources tell Capitolwire they expect Knox to endorse Onorato, the Allegheny County chief executive.
The endorsement would be a huge boost to Onorato, who, despite being the Democratic frontrunner, had not separated himself in early polls from his four opponents. Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Hoeffel, Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty and Auditor General Jack Wagner are also running.
Multiple calls and e-mails to the Knox campaign were not immediately returned. Pa2010.com reported that Campaign Manager Josh Morrow didn’t know anything about Knox’s possible drop-out, although he didn’t categorically deny it.
The news seemed to take much of the Pennsylvania political community by surprise, with many of those contacted by PoliticsPA Wednesday night knowing little to nothing about the possible campaign shakeup. Most observers thought the Democratic field would thin out before the May 18 primary, but that speculation focused mostly on Doherty and, to a lesser extent, Hoeffel.
Knox, who is personally wealthy, was the one candidate who seemed poised to have enough money to compete with Onorato financially. The county executive has raised about $8 million with $6.5 million on hand.
His exit can be spun several ways to the favor, or harm, of the rest of the Democratic field. On one hand, Knox’s departure leaves one fewer socially liberal candidate from the state’s eastern half to siphon votes from Doherty and Hoeffel. But his and his money’s exit also means Onorato has by far the most money of any of the candidates, possibly allowing him to pull away from the field.
The Doherty campaign, in fact, openly discussed a scenario in which Knox and Onorato used their money campaigning against each other, only to have the Scranton mayor “shoot the gap” if voters started looking for a third choice.
Capitolwire reported party leaders are trying to woo both Hoeffel and Doherty out of the race.
