February 05, 2018 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Duquesne News, McKeesport and Region News, Politics & Elections, White Oak News
With his wife, Blayre, holding the Bible, Austin Davis took the oath of office as the new state representative serving Clairton, Duquesne, McKeesport and neighboring communities. (Screenshot from Pennsylvania House of Representatives video feed)
Austin Davis took the oath of office in Harrisburg on Monday to become the newest member of the state's General Assembly.
Surrounded by his parents, family and friends, Davis, 28, of McKeesport was sworn in with his wife, Blayre, standing alongside him, holding the family bible.
Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge David Spurgeon administered the oath.
Davis won a special election Jan. 23 to fill the remaining months of former state Rep. Marc Gergely's term. Gergely resigned after pleading guilty to charges connected with a video poker and illegal gambling ring operating in the Mon Valley.
Davis will represent the 35th District, which includes Clairton, Duquesne, Lincoln, McKeesport, Munhall, Versailles, South Versailles Twp., Whitaker, White Oak and parts of West Mifflin.
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January 24, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Duquesne News, McKeesport and Region News, Politics & Elections, White Oak News
Austin Davis won't get a break --- either from working or campaigning.
The 28-year-old McKeesport resident will be the next state representative for the 35th Legislative District after defeating 37-year-old Fawn Walker-Montgomery of McKeesport on Tuesday in a special election.
Davis expects to wrap up his current job as executive assistant to Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald next week, and be sworn in as a state legislator a few days later.
Then, Davis, a Democrat, will be running in the May 15 primary for a chance at a full term in office.
"I do like to keep a robust schedule, but no, there's not much downtime," Davis said Wednesday.
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January 23, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Politics & Elections
A Republican candidate for governor of Pennsylvania will meet with local residents during a reception Jan. 30 in Elizabeth Twp.
The event for Paul Mango is being sponsored by a group called Vets for Mango and will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Sunset Room, 95 Enterprise St., just off Route 48 near the Central Highlands section of the township, a spokeswoman said.
Although the event is free and open to the public, people planning to attend to should RSVP by calling Brandon Rumbaugh at (724) 812-9285 or emailing bcrusmc@gmail.com.
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January 22, 2018 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Politics & Elections
Voters in the 35th District will head to the polls Tuesday to elect a new state legislator.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. in Clairton, Duquesne, Lincoln, McKeesport, Munhall, South Versailles Twp., Versailles, Whitaker, White Oak and five neighborhoods of West Mifflin.
Democrat Austin Davis (above left) and Republican Fawn Walker-Montgomery (above right), both of McKeesport, are running in the special election to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of former state Rep. Marc Gergely. Gergely resigned after pleading guilty to criminal conspiracy and violating state election laws for his connection to a video-poker and gambling ring.
Walker-Montgomery is a former two-term McKeesport city councilor, while Davis is executive assistant to Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald.
Click on either candidate's name to learn more:
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January 08, 2018 |
By Lynne Glover | Posted in: Politics & Elections
Residents of Clairton, Duquesne, Lincoln, McKeesport, Munhall, South Versailles Twp., Versailles, Whitaker, White Oak and parts of West Mifflin will go to the polls on Jan. 23 to select a replacement for former state Rep. Marc Gergely. Tube City Almanac is profiling both of the candidates.
To read about Fawn Walker-Montgomery, click here.
Twenty-eight-year-old Austin Davis says he’s always been interested in service. “I’ve always wanted to be helpful,” says Davis of his interest in politics.
At 16, he was chairman of the Mayor’s Youth Council in McKeesport. “There were not a lot of people that looked like me in terms of diversity,” says Davis, who is African American.
Then—and now—Davis says he would ask himself: “What’s the best way to give back? How can I make the community a better place?”
Davis says running for office was a natural step toward taking public service to the next level for the people he cares about.
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January 08, 2018 |
By Lynne Glover | Posted in: Politics & Elections
Residents of Clairton, Duquesne, Lincoln, McKeesport, Munhall, South Versailles Twp., Versailles, Whitaker, White Oak and parts of West Mifflin will go to the polls on Jan. 23 to select a replacement for former state Rep. Marc Gergely. Tube City Almanac is profiling both of the candidates.
To read about Austin Davis, click here.
Born and raised in McKeesport, Fawn Walker-Montgomery wasn’t always a Republican.
The 37-year-old, who served as campaign organizer in the Mon Valley during Obama’s presidential run, says she isn’t a Trump supporter either.
She is, however, the first African American woman to run for state legislature in the 35th Legislative District.
She switched parties in 2016 to run against then-incumbent state Rep. Marc Gergely, who subsequently beat her write-in campaign by nearly 6,500 votes, before he pleaded guilty to charges resulting in a sentence of 18 months under house arrest for his role in illegal gambling operations.
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