A WOMAN’S PLACE
IS IN THE HOUSE: 5TH FOES SCANLON, KIM WILL END ALL-MALE PA. DELEGATION IN D.C.
History will be made in the new 5th U.S. Congressional District this fall as voters from both sides of the political spectrum will choose between two female candidates.
The contenders are, according to friends and colleagues of the candidates, a prosecutor who specialized in human trafficking cases known as a fighter for the underdog and a former school board president with a flair for connecting with people.
On Tuesday, Mary Gay Scanlon, a Swarthmore attorney and former Wallingford-Swarthmore school board member, emerged from a field of 10 candidates to become the Democratic nominee for the 5th District. Pearl Kim, a Radnor resident and former senior state deputy attorney general, won the Republican endorsement in March and took her party’s nod without opposion last Tuesday.
Kim was described by those who had worked with her as a leader whose passion was for victims, donating her own time to spread awareness and education about human trafficking.
Five years ago, Kim was the first prosecutor in Pennsylvania to win a case under the newly established Pennsylvania human trafficking law, according to Hugh Organ, associate executive director of Covenant House.
Her drive around this issue and those surrounding victims of sexual and domestic abuse started long before that.
Sheldon Kovac, senior deputy district attorney in the Delaware County District Attorney’s office, said he recalled doing an appellate seminar at Villanova University to a class of 20 in 2006.
“I asked if anybody was interested in criminal law,” he said. “(Kim) was the only one who raised her hand.”
Kovac said even then, she had a passion for cases involving human trafficking, rape and domestic and sexual abuse. He said after speaking with her, he approached then-county Dis- trict Attorney G. Michael Green, who recommended she apply to the office.
“We were very impressed about her,” Kovac said. “She was very much interested in special victims work.”
After graduating from Villanova Law School in 2007, Kim spent her whole time in the D.A.’s office on issues of sexual exploitation of children, trafficking and domestic and sexual abuse.
“She certainly believed that with human trafficking, if you looked for it, you would find it,” he said.
Kovac, who was Kim’s direct supervisor, said she was very people oriented and victim-centric.
“I think she was interested in the best outcome for the victim,” Kovac said, adding that sometimes she was frustrated because the defendant should have faced more but she acquiesced to the needs of the victims, both adults and children, particularly their ability to testify. “Even in cases she was not successful ... she never met a victim or a victim’s family that didn’t feel that they didn’t get a fair shake. They went away thinking, ‘Hey, I got to have my day in court and I got to have my say.’”
When she was at the county prosecutor’s office, she received various awards including the American Bar Association’s Norm Maleng Minister of Justice Award and the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Government Attorney Award.
Organ recalled Kim’s dedication.
“When it comes to human trafficking victims, she’s always been there,” he said. “She feels that human trafficking is such an important issue and she thinks most people are unaware of it.”
He said she really is moved by the exploitation of these victims.
“She fights for the underdog,” Organ said, adding that she’s gone out of her way to advocate for these victims. He said she’s conducted trainings across the state to raise awareness on the issue, such as a time she went to Hershey to train municipal court judges.
He said she also was a great listener,
“To me, she takes everyone’s opinions into account,” Organ said. “Whether she agrees with you or not, she’s still going
On Tuesday, Mary Gay Scanlon, a Swarthmore attorney and former Wallingford-Swarthmore school board member, emerged from a field of 10 candidates to become the Democratic nominee for the 5th District. Pearl Kim, a Radnor resident and former senior state deputy attorney general, won the Republican endorsement in March and took her party’s nod without opposion last Tuesday.
And, she also was quick to help any time it was needed. Organ said if his organization ever had an issue or a question about Delaware County, they could rely on Kim to answer it or direct them to the right resources.
Kovac said he thinks Kim’s motivation to help others is the impetus of her congressional campaign.
“Her running, I’m sure she believes she has an even larger platform that she can effectuate change,” he said, and he outlined what he saw as her strengths. “She’s ambitious, she’s motivated, she’s intelligent, she’s articulate ... She’s always fought the good fight.”
Organ said Kim has natural ability for such a capacity.
“She’s a leader, there’s no doubt about it,” he said. “She’s a leader. She’s a lawand-order type person. I think she’s what we need in Congress – a female leader who can straighten things out right now. She’s a very strong, female leader, so I think she’d be excellent in Congress.”
At the Inn at Swarthmore Tuesday night where Scanlon and her supporters converged, the focus was on her suitability for U.S. representative.
Swarthmore resident Perri Evanson has known Scanlon for decades through book clubs and even her son, Matt, selling eggs from their chickens at the farmer’s market.
“Swarthmore’s a small town,” she said, “so you get to know people who are movers and shakers and Mary Gay really truly was and is.”
Evanson described Scanlon as “smart, concise and has a vision for where we should be going.”
That was evident every Jan. 1.
“I can’t run worth a darn, I barely run,” Evanson said. “We would do the New Year’s Day run every year that they sponsor. Her husband would have this New Year’s Day run around Swarthmore. She would fly by me. She just has determination like nobody’s business.”
Colleen Guiney, chair of the Swarthmore Democratic Committee, offered other characteristics of Scanlon that have appeal.
“She will serve this community with dignity and honor and perseverance,” she said. “She is fiercely devoted to improving people’s lives.”
Guiney said Scanlon grew up in a Kennedy-supported background.
“She believes what they believed in – government is here to help make people’s lives better,” she said.
Evanson added that she wanted a full candidate.
“To me that was really important, there’s more to her than just, ‘I’m angry and I want to put my name on the ballot.’ That was important.”
And, she spoke to Scanlon’s appeal.
“One of the greatest things for me is my father used to be a Republican ... in Manhattan,” Evanson said. “He was one of less than 1 percent in Greenwich Village.”
Now, a resident of Plush Mills, Ken Wright spent a chunk of his Tuesday lobbying for Scanlon.
“He came down, he became a Democrat and he stood with me, he’s 84, he stood with me outside a polling station today for hours – for Mary Gay,” Evanson said.
“When this all started, we all talked about what does Mary Gay stand for, where is she,” Evanson said. “And, what she stood for was what we stood for which was no guns, taking care of education, she’s really big on that, supporting women.”
And, Guiney noted Scanlon’s ability to connect with people.
“She was in Southwest Philly with people who are now grandmothers who she took care of when they were younger,” Guiney said. “She was canvassing out of a small home in South Philadelphia with someone who’d worked in (her) firm for 15 years ... and I saw her having those conversations. She loves connecting with the voters and hearing what they want. She wants to serve the people. Her life is about taking care of people, individuals.”
She said she expects that to continue as the campaign moves forward.
“I was with her at Broad and Snyder and somebody stopped her car on Broad Street and shouted out the window, ‘Mary Gay, I can’t wait to vote for you,’” Guiney said.
The Democrat said Scanlon’s special and not because she’s a woman in an election year that favors them.
“My understanding is that women are connecting with people but she’s a unique woman,” she said. “She’s not just a woman. It’s not about her gender. It’s about who she is as a human being and she’s a warm and caring person. That comes through.”
“She’s a leader, there’s no doubt about it. She’s a leader. She’s a lawand-order type person. I think she’s what we need in Congress – a female leader who can straighten things out right now. She’s a very strong, female leader, so I think she’d be excellent in Congress.” —Hugh Organ, associate executive director of Covenant House, on Pearl Kim, the Republican candidate for the 5th Congressional District “I can’t run worth a darn, I barely run. We would do the New Year’s Day run every year that they sponsor. Her husband would have this New Year’s Day run around Swarthmore. She would fly by me. She just has determination like nobody’s business.” — Swarthmore resident Perri Evanson on Mary Gar Scanlon, the Democratic candidate for the 5th Congressional District