Chris Deluzio declares candidacy for Conor Lamb’s seat, though there isn’t any assure the district will exist after the redistribution – CBS Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Chris Deluzio, an Iraq war veteran, announced that he is running next year in Congress for the seat of Congressman Conor Lamb, who is running for the U.S. Senate.

But it’s not clear if Lamb’s Congressional District will exist in 2022. When Lamb announced for the Senate a few weeks ago, his 17th congressional district in suburban Pittsburgh was put on the table.

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“If history is a judge, if a seat becomes vacant due to retirement, or if someone leaves to run for higher office, it is certainly easier than trying to put two incumbents in the same district,” says the Republican political strategist Mike Devanney.

Pennsylvania will lose one of its 18 seats in Congress next year, but it won’t be 17th, says Deluzio, a Democrat and political director of the Cyber ​​Law, Policy & Security Institute at the University of Pittsburgh.

Deluzio, a graduate of the Naval Academy in Annapolis and the Georgetown Law School, separates in Iraq and wants to succeed Lamb in the US House of Representatives.

“When I look at the census data we saw this month, I see that the numbers for the 17th district were pretty strong, better than people expected,” Deluzio told KDKA political editor Jon Delano. “I’m seeing good growth in Allegheny County, the best since 1960.”

Deluzio says major population losses in the north central part of the state should mean that the eliminated district came from this region, not here. If the district that lost the most residents could take the blow, it would be the 15th district, represented by Congressman Glenn GT Thompson, a Republican.

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Deluzio, who now lives in Shadyside but grew up in the 17th, says he, his wife, and young children would move to the district once the final lines are drawn.

“My hope is that we have a competitive and fair card. I grew up in today’s district of Thornburg, which I called home when I was in uniform. I live in Pittsburgh, but no matter what happens in the final relocation, I will live in that district if I am lucky enough to represent him in Congress and deserve the support of my neighbors, ”said Deluzio.

New congressional districts will be drawn this fall by a Republican legislature and a Democratic governor. Political strategist DeVanney says Deluzio and other candidates are smart to start now.

“In order to raise the necessary funds, you may have to report earlier than there is a district,” says DeVanney. “That sounds very unconventional and, to be honest, there could be candidates who announce a candidacy today who ultimately give up a candidacy because there is no district.”

Like Lamb, Deluzio says he will not accept campaign donations.

“I look to Washington, I look at a lot of the Republican side bidding the most powerful corporations and billionaires, and for me that goes against what I think it means to be a patriot, what it means to be to serve. So I will fight for politics to invest in us and our region, ”says the democrat.

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So far, Deluzio is the only announced Democrat for the Lamb seat. If the district survives, Republican sources say possible GOP candidates include former Congressman Keith Rothfus, former House Speaker Mike Turzai, and former Congressional candidate Sean Parnell, who is now running for the U.S. Senate.