Veteran Democrat Staves Off Tough Challenge for House Seat in Pennsylvania

For Republicans looking to fight back the blue tide projected today, Paul Kanjorski, a Democratic House member in Pennsylvania, seemed like a good bet. But their hopes went the way of the nation today, as Kanjorski, despite most analysts' predictions, clung to his seat by a slender margin.

His races hadn't always been so tight. The 71-year-old took his past two races by enormous margins—72.5 percent and 94 percent, respectively. But he came very close to losing this one. Saying he "had the smell of death around him" for months leading up to the election, Cook Political Report editor Dave Wasserman pointed out that he was "pretty much the only veteran Democrat that the DCCC has had to go in and defend."

The reasons for the tight race? One was former Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta's strength as a candidate. Advocates called his nationally publicized crusade against illegal immigration an example of his willingness to take on members of his own party. They also pointed to the 52-year-old's securing the nominations of both the Republican and Democratic parties in his re-election campaign for mayor, making him hard to peg as a "Bush Republican."

The largest stumbling block for Kanjorski, though, was Kanjorski himself. By serving on the Financial Services Committee and publicly advocating the $700 billion bailout, he linked himself to the economic meltdown. Even more damaging have been the gaffes and scandals marring his campaign. One of the biggest controversies was his earmarking millions of dollars to a company owned by his relatives—a charge investigated by the FBI, although they found no wrongdoing. The scandal surfaced in 2002, but Barletta hit it hard again in his campaign.

It didn't stick—or at least, not enough. Kanjorski will return to the House this year for his 13th term.