Pa. Rep. Scott Perry led a conservative House takeover. Now he’s in a tough race against a moderate Democrat

In the intense race for House control, candidates in the most competitive districts have mostly followed a similar playbook, boosting their moderate credentials while playing to a middle ground of voters. Then there’s the arch-conservative Rep. Scott Perry.

The Pennsylvania Republican chaired the right-wing House Freedom Caucus while it seized control of the GOP’s House majority in 2022, often grinding the chamber to a halt to force Republican leaders to hear out their demands. Perry also played a prominent role in then- President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, to the point that the FBI seized his cell phone as part of an investigation.

Yet Perry is not backing away from his history as a disruptor, even as the Freedom Caucus has been at the center of a chaotic and historically unproductive two years for the House. He is being challenged by Democrat Janelle Stelson, a former TV news anchor who is well-known in a fast-growing district that includes Harrisburg and its surrounding communities.

“Should I just go along with Washington, D.C., as most of my other colleagues did, just to moderate myself?” Perry said. “No, I’m going to do the right thing every single time I have the opportunity.”

That determination has set up an intense race in Pennsylvania that shows how Republicans — from Trump to House Speaker Mike Johnson — are doubling down on their hardline promises in the final days of the campaign, even in a state that could be decisive in both the presidential election and the fight for control of the House.

Perry’s district has modestly favored Republicans since it was redrawn in 2018, and Trump won it by 4 percentage points in 2020. But as Perry runs for a seventh term, he faces a vigorous challenge.

Once a registered Republican herself, Stelson is on the hunt for Republicans and right-leaning voters who may be willing to break away from Perry. Like Democrats across the country, she has focused on voters concerned that Republicans could enact federal restrictions on abortion and reproductive care. Perry has in the past sponsored legislation to ban abortions.

“Abortion really crosses all party lines,” she said. “I’ve had elderly Republican women tell me, ‘No government and no Scott Perry is going to tell me what to do with my body.’”

Stelson is also leaning on her background as a local news anchor, casting herself as someone voters can trust.

“Because she was on the news for so many years, she feels like she was a part of your household,” said Vickie Washington, a 71-year-old retiree in York who said she plans to vote for Stelson.

Stelson has raised over $1 million more than Perry, forcing top House Republicans to come to his aid as they try to hold their narrow majority.

Democrats have outspent Republicans on the race so far, according to AdImpact, which tracks campaign ad spending. They’ve spent more than $7 million as of Tuesday, compared to more than $4 million spent by Republicans.

Perry has leaned more heavily on political action committees throughout the campaign, the data shows, though both sides have gotten considerable support from outside groups. The Congressional Leadership Fund, a super political action committee aligned with the House speaker, is on track to spend $2.3 million in the race.

“This is an individual who comes to work every day, rolls up his sleeves and gets the job done,” Johnson said of Perry during a visit to the district in early October, adding that he had named Perry to a coveted spot on the House Intelligence Committee.

But that move drew grumbling among some House Republicans. Perry was chosen over several other mainstream Republicans for the committee, which handles sensitive classified information and oversees U.S. spy agencies. The choice of a close Trump ally like Perry, who was ordered by a federal judge last year to turn over more than 1,600 texts and emails to FBI agents investigating efforts to keep Trump in office, was widely criticized.

Perry has not been charged with any crime and has said he is not under investigation. He also said last week he would vote to certify this year’s election results “as long as everything seems like it’s done fairly and correctly and in a trustworthy fashion.”

However, Perry has signed onto a lawsuit from Pennsylvania Republicans that requests a court to set aside ballots from overseas voters, including members of the military, to confirm their identities before being counted. Perry previously voted from overseas himself while serving abroad with the National Guard, the York Dispatch reported.

Perry has also gone on the attack against Stelson, pointing out that she currently lives outside the district’s boundaries. She has said she will move if she wins the election.

As the candidates exchange barbs in the race’s final days, Stelson is not focusing her attacks solely on the attempt by Trump and Perry to overturn the presidential election results four years ago, which culminated in a mob of Trump’s supporters storming the Capitol. Though Stelson argues that Perry’s actions should be “disqualifying,” she is casting them as part of a wider pattern that shows Perry is more focused on internal struggles in Washington than the needs of Pennsylvania constituents.

Her supporters say that’s a smart move at a time when things like living costs are on top of voters’ minds.

“Whatever they feel about (Jan. 6th), they’re kind of tired hearing about it,” said Craig Snyder, who is organizing a group called Republicans Against Perry, which is funded by Welcome PAC, a political action committee that boosts moderate Democrats.

As Stelson last week spoke to a room of supporters at a winery in a rural part of the district dominated by Trump signs, she highlighted how Perry has voted against legislation that she said would benefit military veterans, Capitol police officers and firefighters.

“At every turn, here’s a guy who voted against you rather than for you,” she said.

Still, Perry insists that his mission in Washington is to reduce government spending, which would in turn drive down inflation.

“I represent you. I’m looking at your cost of living. I’m paying the same thing,” Perry told the audience at a recent campaign event.

That message resonates in one of the state’s fastest-growing regions with housing prices on the rise.

Russaline Nolden, who runs a bakery and smoothie shop in York, said she feels the pinch of high prices on her business. She has usually supported Democrats but is leaning towards Trump and other Republicans.

“The system is unjust,” she said, complaining that government assistance is misused. “Put the money where it’s going to be appreciated.”

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Associated Press writer Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.