Candidates weigh in on crime, schools
Schweyer, Santiago discuss key topics ahead of rematch
This story is one in a series of stories previewing key May 17 primary races in the Lehigh Valley region.
Two years after they faced off in the 2020 Democratic primary for an Allentown House seat, Enid Santiago and Rep. Peter Schweyer enter the final stages of their rematch with similarly upbeat attitudes about their campaigns but vastly different takes on key questions.
Schweyer is a four-term state representative whose Allentown home has been drawn into a different House district than the 22nd District he currently represents. There, he beat Santiago by only 55 votes two years ago in the Democratic primary.
Santiago is a community leader whose home, like Schweyer’s, is in the newly drawn 134th House District.
It covers parts of Allentown and Salisbury Township and all of Emmaus in Lehigh County. The voting-age population is about 61% Democratic and 39% Republican, and about 51% of voting-age residents are part of a minority group.
Schweyer says he grew up poor in Allentown and has gone on to become an effective and reliable public servant, building relationships in Harrisburg that benefit the people of the Lehigh Valley.
Santiago, born in Puerto Rico, describes herself as an outsider whose activism already has helped Allentown’s large Hispanic community, and as a lesbian she has sought to protect the LGBTQ community.
Their clashing views include far-apart positions on crime and policing.
Schweyer, asked about a stat that showed Allentown is less safe than many cities, rejected the premise and said he believed the city was safe, although
“there is always room for improvement.”
Santiago was among Black Lives Matter supporters who protested for racial justice after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a former Minneapolis police officer. Her response to a question about a bleak Allentown crime stat was that police should “live in the communities that they are servicing ... Literally, a residency requirement.”
Here are the candidates’ thoughts on other questions. Some responses have been edited for length or clarity:
QUESTION: This newly drawn House district includes both Hiram Dodd Elementary School (Allentown School District) and Emmaus High School (East Penn School District) from two distinctly different school districts. One has about 5% of people living below the poverty line while the other has 26%. How do parents know you can adequately represent both in Harrisburg? (Part of Salisbury Township School District also is in the 134th.)
SANTIAGO: “We need equal, fair school funding. There is no reason why parents in one district need to worry about not enough opportunities as the other. Every single child deserves the same equity. So we will make East Penn an example of exactly what Allentown School District should be . ... On everything. From the buildings, the facilities that they have, the different classes that they are taking in each school. It should be a model.”
SCHWEYER: “All three of them are underfunded compared to the fair funding formula. Now, obviously,
Allentown is severely underfunded compared to the other two and should be the priority ... The systemic problem of not investing in growing school districts that have more diverse populations is a statewide problem and is something that I have been working to address since the day I was elected ... I should add, those with a higher special education population.”
QUESTION: What have you done that proves you are able to work with people who disagree with you on major issues?
SANTIAGO: “When I had a disagreement with Phil Armstrong, the county executive, over the whole issue with the 911 center, I was able to meet with leaders of Lehigh County and be able to implement what it is that we needed done to help resolve the issues ... Now, Lehigh County has a community liaison that is Latino, and we have a
Human Relations Commission. On top of that, they started expanding their bilingual hiring process to make sure that the 911 operators — there were 63 of them and not one of them was bilingual — that has now changed.”
SCHWEYER: “I look at our recent 5G bill, which again was the infrastructure thing to improve high-speed Internet. That was four members that worked on it, two Democrats and two Republicans. I was one of the two Democrats. I was part of the bipartisan commission that created the Medical marijuana law here in Pennsylvania ... And then even things like working with colleagues on regional funding, regional projects, so the Da Vinci Center, for example, has gotten funding support from Democrats and Republicans.”
QUESTION: Should this consideration be a factor in voters’ decisions: ‘Without an Enid Santiago victory, Allentown — where 54% of the population is Hispanic — will once again not have a person from that community in Harrisburg?’
SANTIAGO: “I believe that it should be. Not only would you not have another language, you would not have a female either. You would not have a woman. It is three white men that are fighting to run the city of Allentown, in Harrisburg. So ‘Enid’ is qualified and has a diversity of inclusion needed to work on a diverse community.”
SCHWEYER: “I lived in nine places by the time I was 18 years old. I understand what it means to struggle. I do not understand what it means to be a Latino. However, I have been elected six straight times to represent the city of Allentown ... My neighbors [and friends], who are extremely diverse, would say that I am doing a perfectly good job of representing the folks in Allentown regardless of their nation of origin.”
QUESTION: What is the accomplishment in your life that gives you the most pride?
SANTIAGO: “My children. We have already broken the cycle. No teenage parenthood. All of them received their high school diplomas. They are all productive members of society. They have already accomplished what I was not able to ... I have four biological and two ‘bonus,’ but the caveat on that is that me and my partner, we have known each other since I was 15 years old so I have been involved in her childrens’ lives their entire life.”
SCHWEYER: “I was a working poor kid growing up. And people like me weren’t necessarily supposed to go to college; people like me weren’t necessarily supposed to graduate with an honors degree from a school like Penn State ... But you know, being able to share that moment with Mom and Dad, when it was something that was so out of reach for both of them, was a pretty good day for me.”
QUESTION: Two years ago, you and your opponent faced off in a different House district and the result led to accusations of unfairness. This year, there has been a controversial 11-day petition-signing period and then a challenge to petitions whose resolution was the last to be announced among dozens across the state. Has the process so far been fair, and do you expect this will be a fair election?
SANTIAGO: “The process has not been fair for any person challenging an incumbent. Do I expect this to be a fair election? I am hoping that it is. Unfortunately, my opponent is doing everything in his power to make sure this is not equitable for me. From challenging my petitions, dragging me to court, and so on and so forth. I hope that the election process itself is fair. It is scary ... So all I can do is hope and pray that this time we have a little bit more fairness, because up to now, it has not happened.”
SCHWEYER: “The process has been fair insofar as we both have had to follow the exact same sets of rules ... The election was fair last cycle. In 2020 ... Shame on any candidate who is misrepresenting — any candidate, I don’t care if your name is Donald Trump or somebody else — shame on any candidate who is misrepresenting the fact that all of our votes were counted, they were counted accurately and that the process was exactly the same for both of us.”