Houlahan decides against running for U.S. Senate in 2022

Houlahan's entry would have brought a considerable presence to the race for the Democratic nomination from the heavily populated southeastern corner of Pennsylvania.

Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa

Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan said Tuesday that she will not run for Pennsylvania’s open U.S. Senate seat in 2022, after several months of the Democrat having considered it.

Houlahan’s entry would have brought a considerable presence to the race for the Democratic nomination from the heavily populated southeastern corner of Pennsylvania.

However, Houlahan said in a statement that she will instead run again for her Chester County-based seat in the U.S. House.

Still, Houlahan faces the prospect that her district boundaries could change considerably as Pennsylvania must shrink its House delegation from 18 to 17 ahead of 2022’s elections because of the state’s slower-than-average population growth over the past decade.

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Otherwise, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman has declared his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, while U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb from suburban Pittsburgh is considering running.

A state lawmaker, Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta of Philadelphia, and a Montgomery County commissioner, Val Arkoosh, have declared their candidacy, as have several first-time candidates.

They include John McGuigan, a software executive, and Dr. Kevin Baumlin, the chair of emergency medicine at Pennsylvania Hospital. Philadelphia state Sen. Sharif Street has said he is considering running.

The Republican side is also wide open.

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The seat is open after two-term Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey announced in October that he would not run again.

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