Former GOP Leaders Urge Pennsylvania Voters to Unseat Rep. Scott Perry

In an unusual bipartisan appeal, five former Republican leaders issued a letter on Monday calling on Pennsylvania voters to remove Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) by supporting his Democratic opponent, Janelle Stelson, in the upcoming election. The letter, signed by former U.S. Representatives Barbara Comstock (R-VA), Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), Denver Riggleman (R-VA), Dave Trott (R-MI), and Joe Walsh (R-IL), represents a rare endorsement of a Democratic candidate by GOP veterans.

“As current and former leaders from the Republican Party, it is rare for us to endorse a Democrat running for Congress,” the former representatives wrote in their letter, according to Mediaite. The signatories, who have each served under Republican leadership, expressed a shared concern about Perry’s ongoing role in Congress and encouraged Pennsylvania voters to consider Stelson as an alternative.

Rep. Scott Perry, who is seeking his seventh term in office, faces a strong challenge in a district that has generally leaned Republican since being redrawn in 2018. According to Pittsburgh’s WESA FM, former President Donald Trump won Perry’s district by four percentage points in the 2020 election. Despite this Republican advantage, Perry’s re-election campaign is facing significant financial hurdles and a formidable opponent in Stelson.

The letter continued:

Where Stelson will work with Republicans and Democrats to find common ground, Scott Perry is consistently rated as one of the least bipartisan members of Congress. He is routinely the only member of the Pennsylvania delegation – Republican or Democrat – to oppose common sense measures that would improve the lives of his constituents, including legislation to protect firefighters and crack down on human trafficking.

Scott Perry also turned his back on our brave veterans by being the only Republican or Democrat in the Pennsylvania delegation to vote against legislation to house homeless veterans. He also opposed the bipartisan PACT Act, the largest expansion of VA benefits in history, which provided healthcare and compensation to servicemembers who suffered from toxic burn pit exposure. These are the men and women who risked – and in many cases, gave – their lives to defend our freedom.

Perhaps nothing is more emblematic of Perry’s brazen self-interest than his involvement in the plot to overturn the results of the 2020 election. After playing a direct role in the effort to nullify the will of Pennsylvania’s voters, Perry had his cell phone seized by the FBI and has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on legal defense fees. Former White House staffer Cassidy Hutchinson testified under oath that Perry requested a presidential pardon for his actions in the leadup to the deadly January 6th insurrection.

Financial support from GOP leadership has been minimal, with Axios reporting that as of October 12, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) and the Congressional Leadership Fund have made virtually no ad purchases in Perry’s district. Perry’s lack of financial backing from GOP leaders may further complicate his path to victory as Stelson gains momentum in a district already closely watched by both parties.

This unusual move by prominent former Republicans signals deep divisions within the GOP over Perry’s leadership. Adam Kinzinger, one of the letter’s signatories and a former congressman known for his outspoken criticism of Trump’s influence on the Republican Party, has been vocal in advocating for bipartisan support to counter candidates he sees as divisive or unfit for office.

The decision of these Republican leaders to back a Democrat underscores a shifting political dynamic in Perry’s district and a willingness among some Republicans to cross party lines in the face of pressing ideological divides. As Election Day nears, Pennsylvania voters are now being urged by both Democratic and Republican voices to reconsider Perry’s tenure, making this race one of the more unpredictable contests this cycle.