Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Costello to withdraw from ballot
Gregory Michael McCauley will be lone candidate running in 6th District GOP primary
There will be only one name on the Republican ballot for the May primary in the 6th Congressional District, as incumbent U.S. Rep. Ryan Costello said Tuesday that he will ask that his name be withdrawn from the race.
Costello’s decision, which he said was made after consulting with local party leaders, leaves the path for Democrat Chrissy Houlahan wide open for victory in the fall, as her presumed opponent, Chadds Ford tax attorney Gregory Michael McCauley, has little political experience or name recognition and trails her in fundraising by almost $1 million.
Costello, who said he would
file the request to have his name removed from the ballot with the Department of State in Harrisburg by the Tuesday deadline, decided to take the step to make a “clean and quick” break from the race, rather than leave his name on even though he has signaled that he does not intend to seek re-election in the fall.
“It would be kind of disingenuous,” to ask voters to cast ballots for him in the May 15 primary at the same time telling them he would drop out if nominated. If he had stayed in the spring race and won, local and state GOP leaders could have named a replacement candidate without a special election if he withdrew between May and August.
“I don’t think running in a primary and saying, ‘Vote for me so party leaders can pick a new candidate,’ is credible,” the twoterm congressman said in an interview Tuesday, two days after announcing to the Daily Local News that he had decided to drop his bid for re-election because of the new congressional map, which he considered unconstitutionally adopted, and a toxic political environment that includes attacks from the left and disappointment with President Donald Trump.
Chester County GOP Chairman Val DiGiorgio, who doubles as the state party’s leader, said on Tuesday that there are no current plans to try to run a write-in campaign against McCauley in an attempt to find a better known candidate to run against Houlahan in the fall.
“We have one candidate who has filed for the primary, and as far as I know he is the only candidate who has expressed interest,” he said. He pointed to a statement issued Monday in which he wished Costello well.
“We are disappointed in Congressman Costello’s decision not to seek another term in Congress,” DiGiorgio’s statement read. “I am confident that had he remained in the race, Congressman Costello would have won re-election.
“In the face of a hostile and highly charged political environment and daily attacks from the left, Congressman Costello made his decision based on the best interests of his family. We wish them the best,” he said. “This recent news further demonstrates how the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s partisan decision has thrown Pennsylvania’s electoral process into chaos. The Supreme Court overstepped its authority when five activist justices re-drew congressional maps, a power not enumerated to the judiciary under the constitution.”
Rahul Kale, the campaign manager for Houlahan, the Easttown businesswoman and veteran who has garnered significant endorsements from local, state and national Democratic leaders, declined to comment on the withdrawal move Tuesday.
Chester County Democratic Chairman Brian McGinnis, however, hailed the opportunity to run a race for Houlahan against an almost unknown candidate.
“I’m looking forward to electing Chrissy Houlahan to Congress and, once again, making history in Chester County,” he said Tuesday, referring to the sweep of county row offices last November. “For the first time in a long time, voters in the 6th Congressional District will have actual representation in Congress. Chrissy Houlahan will actually stand up to Donald Trump and his failed agenda.”
McCauley, for one, knows what he is up against.
“It’s been a steep learning curve,” said McCauley in an interview last week. “But I am going to give it the best shot I can.”
He described his campaign as one for fiscal conservativism, and said he was energized when Costello voted against the changes Trump wanted in the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.
“My clients are all small business people, and this has been crippling,” he said. “We need to fix health care in this county, and to address the entire (federal) budget at one time. You can’t address anything until you cut all the fat out of the budget. Most politicians don’t even understand the budget, and our country is going bankrupt.”
Early supporters include state Rep. Steven Barrar, R-160, of Chadds Ford. McCauley said he promotes his candidacy as “a conservative Republican,” but also added that he is not overly concerned with political labels, and does not take stances on social issues. “I’m not a Democrat, I’m not a Republican. I’m an American.”
Costello said he had made sure that McCauley’s candidacy would hold up to nominating petition challenges before announcing his decision to have his name removed. Had McCauley’s nomination been derailed in court because of insufficient valid signatures, for example, an open ballot would have left open the door for a Democrat like Houlahan to wage a write-in campaign for the seat in the Republican primary.
The 6th District now includes all of Chester County and a portion of southern Berks County, a map that political observers say benefits a Democratic candidate.