House races are in full swing, but layered with uncertainty

HARRISBURG, PA. » Pennsylvania’s congressional races are in full swing, while Republicans are waging legal battles in federal courts in an effort to block a new map of 18 districts imposed by the state Supreme Court.

That has added a layer of uncertainly to fields of candidates that already went through upheaval when the state’s high court redrew boundaries last month, putting the homes of some congressional hopefuls into different districts or forcing them to rethink their candidacy.

Primary fields are crowded, and dozens of people are collecting signatures to get on primary election ballots.

Some candidates are running in districts where they don’t live in order to improve their chances of winning. Some dropped out, while others decided to run in their new district or seek another office. The fields are dynamic: on Friday alone, several candidates dropped out or announced that they would run in a different district.

The election has national implications, as Pennsylvania Democrats believe the court’s map gives them an improved playing field to win seats in Congress and boost the party’s chances at erasing the GOP’s U.S. House majority in the fall election.

WHAT ARE THE BIG DATES?

The deadline for candidates to file 1,000 signatures of qualified registered voters is March 20. The primary election is May 15.

WHAT’S GOING ON WITH THE LAWSUITS?

At the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Samuel Alito has given the new map’s defenders — the Democratic voters who successfully challenged Pennsylvania’s congressional map in state courts — until Monday to respond to a Republican effort to block its use.

Republicans argue that the court overstepped its authority in throwing out the six-year-old Republican-drawn map, and gave lawmakers too little time to craft their own replacement.

Republicans are also asking a panel of lower federal judges to immediately throw out the map. The next hearing in that case is Friday.

The state Supreme Court’s ruling was indeed novel: Constitutional law scholars say they know of no other state court that has ever thrown out congressional district boundaries over a partisan gerrymandering claim without an express state constitutional provision prohibiting partisan favoritism in redistricting.