Dem Party leaders urge Pa.’s McGinty to run for U.S. Senate

Is Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf’s chief of staff, Katie McGinty, about to run for the U.S. Senate? We should know soon.

McGinty attended a weekend meeting in Martha’s Vineyard with national leaders of the Democratic party who want her to take on Republican Pennsylvania U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey next year.  She talked with members of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

McGinty ran for governor last year. While she came up well short in the Democratic primary, she traveled the state, built her name recognition and impressed a lot of people in debates.

Mike Mikus, who managed McGinty’s campaign last year, said she’s “intrigued” at the prospect of a Senate run, but has a lot to consider.

She’ll have to consider it pretty quickly, both because she needs to start raising money and building a campaign, and because her current gig is highly incompatible with being a candidate for office.

McGinty is in a key role at a critical time for Wolf as he tries to negotiate a complex budget deal with Republicans in the state Legislature. Until she rules out running for the Senate, everything she says and does will be seen in a political light.

“Obviously, she cannot be a candidate for office while serving as the governor’s chief of staff, so I anticipate that a decision will come soon,” Mikus said.

Of course, if McGinty does decide to run, she’ll won’t get the party’s nomination without a fight.

Former Delaware County Congressman Joe Sestak is off and running on his campaign to win the Democratic primary, much to the irritation of many Democratic Party leaders. 

Sestak ran against then-Sen. Arlen Specter in 2010, who had switched parties and become a Democrat to run for re-election.

Sestak defeated Specter and lost narrowly to Toomey in the general election.