Casey campaigns in Bucks County for down ballot candidates

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(The Center Square) – Emphasizing the importance of the upcoming midterm election, former U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr. headlined a rally for Democrats running up and down the ballot in one of Pennsylvania’s marquee battleground counties.

“In so many ways, what happens here in Bucks County will largely determine what happens in our Commonwealth,” Casey said on Saturday during a rally in Langhorne. “And so it's a big responsibility to put on your shoulders. But I know you're ready for it.”

Casey, the longest serving Democratic senator in Pennsylvania history, delivered a speech in the Philadelphia suburban county at the center of several closely watched races this November. Those contests could determine majorities in the state legislature and Congress. 

At the federal level, all eyes are on Pennsylvania’s 1st U.S. House District. U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican serving his fifth term in Congress, is facing a challenge from Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie, a Democrat.

Casey made the case that a Democratic majority in Congress would focus on helping families with rising costs. 

“Everywhere you go, whether it's here in Bucks County or in my hometown of Scranton or anywhere in our Commonwealth, in our country, every family it seems is struggling with costs of one kind or another,” Casey said. “Especially if they're low-income families. Especially if they're middle-class families.”

He blamed President Donald Trump’s administration for the rising costs and also spoke out against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law last year. 

Casey said cuts made to Medicaid and SNAP in that legislation would negatively impact Pennsylvanians and people across the country. But, he said, Harvie and a Democratic majority would have the power to undo some of that legislation and reverse those cuts.

When directing his attention to the state level, Casey talked about his support for Gov. Josh Shapiro’s bid for a second term over Republican State Treasurer Stacy Garrity and the push to have a Democratic trifecta in Pennsylvania’s General Assembly. 

On hand at the rally whose races could have a role in Democrats achieving that trifecta were Kristin Egan, challenging state Rep. Joe Hogan in the state House and Eileen Hartnett Albillar, running against state Sen. Frank Farry. 

Casey said that with Shapiro back in the governor’s office for a second term, coupled with Democratic majorities in both chambers, the state could raise its minimum wage and increase investments into education and childcare.

Education funding took center stage in each of the speeches by candidates and union officials, with the American, Philadelphia, and Neshaminy Federation of Teachers speaking before they set out to knock on doors in the area. 

The candidates in attendance on Saturday were “pro-education, pro-labor, pro-middle class, and pro-working families,” according to Arthur Steinberg, AFT vice president.

“I will say, in all the years I've been doing this, this is probably the most qualified slew of candidates from the federal level all the way down to the municipal level that I've ever seen,” Steinberg said. “They stand with us and not Jeff Yass and all the other billionaires.”

“They are anti-voucher, anti-privatization of public education,” he added. “(They) want a livable minimum wage, want affordable groceries and gasoline for our families.”

Yass, cofounder of Susquehanna International Group, is Pennsylvania’s richest resident and has a real-time net worth of $77.8 billion, according to Forbes. He’s an advocate for school choice and has invested millions in supporting candidates who also share those education policies.

Since 2021, Yass and his wife, Janine, have granted $84 million to 285 schools that have served 14 million students in experimental educational programs – like micro schools, charter schools, and those that target students with special needs.

It’s historically been a line in the sand between parties, however.

Harvie, who was a teacher before serving as a Bucks County commissioner, said educators understand how hard it is to make ends meet right now and claimed billionaires don’t want to see them win their races. 

“We know that the billionaires have made their choice. They don't want us,” Harvie said. “Jeffrey Yass doesn't want any of us to win.”

“Elon Musk doesn't want any of us to win because they know we're not on their side. We're not fighting for them. We're not running for these offices to work for them,” he continued. “We're running for these offices to work for you, and for the kids you teach, and for their families, and everybody in this district who's been fighting so hard just to make ends meet, harder than they should have to.”

Musk, the world’s richest man, started a political action committee that has invested money supporting several Pennsylvania Republicans running for Congress, including Fitzpatrick’s reelection bid.

Fundraising committees on both sides of the aisle have notably backed Fitzpatrick, including the Environmental Defense Fund Action Votes.

Egan, a teacher and school board director, said she was committed to fully funding education and touted her support for raising the minimum wage and for “strong unions.” 

“I believe in protecting our seniors from being taxed out of their homes, and as someone raising the next generation here, I believe that they deserve clean air and open space,” she said. 

Albillar, a social worker and Bucks County Clerk of Courts, echoed a similar sentiment and said the race in the state Senate’s 6th District against Farry would determine if Shapiro is able to accomplish his agenda of “fully funding public schools, and raising the minimum wage, and fully funding SEPTA, and taking care of our seniors.”

She also noted the battleground status of her race and those of others on the Bucks County ballot this year. 

“We are on fire here because people know that this is the center of the political universe right now,” Albillar said. “This is the swingiest district in the swingiest county in the swingiest state - all eyes are here on Bucks County.”

Bucks County is widely regarded as one of the premier swing counties in Pennsylvania. 

In 2024, Trump became the first Republican presidential candidate to win the county since George H.W. Bush did so in 1988.

In addition to Trump’s victory in 2024, Republican Dave McCormick unseated Casey and flipped the U.S. Senate seat red.

Although McCormick bested Casey, the Democratic incumbent narrowly carried Bucks County in the 2024 race.

Fitzpatrick won his bid for reelection by double digits in 2024, while Vice President Kamala Harris narrowly carried these boundaries over Trump.

He’s also viewed as the favorite to earn a sixth term in the U.S. House, although the 2026 race appears to be tightening, according to a trio of national ratings outlets.

The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, and Sabato’s Crystal Ball describe the race as “Leans Republican.” However, a new poll showed Harvie holding a narrow lead. 

Fitzpatrick and Farry, on Saturday, joined the Philadelphia Building Trades Council for a rally boosting their bids for another term.

After serving seven terms in the state House, Farry was elected to the state Senate in 2022 by defeating Democrat Ann Marie Mitchell by 8 points. Hogan’s most recent successful bid in 2024 was a nearly 10-point victory over Democratic challenger Anna Payne. 

Despite these several point victories, Democrats see an opportunity to flip those seats. Shapiro, who won Bucks County by 20 points in 2022 over GOP state Sen. Doug Mastriano, has endorsed Albillar and Egan.