Live Out Loud: Who are the 2010 Midterm Election Candidates?

This November 2^nd, residents of southeast Delaware County should not only know what the positions they are voting for are, but who the people are that are running for them. One method of deciding how to vote is to look at the candidate’s party affiliation:what are the main positions of that party? What are the most prominent issues within that party? How does that party hope to achieve these goals? Still, no matter if the candidate is Democratic, Republican, Green, or Independent, what voters should primarily focus on is that candidate in particular’s goals and objectives for running for a particular position.

First of all, here are the basic issues that the three main parties Republican, Democratic, and Green Party support:

Please note: not all members of each party agree with these positions

Republican Party

Republicans tend to be associated with the more conservative side of politics. The overarching concept of the Republican Party is to limit the power of the federal government and have the federal government defer to the states. Republicans associate themselves more so with state’s rights and prefer minimal federal government involvement in the economy, as well as social and health matters. Republicans emphasize free markets and the individual as the primary factors in economic success. Republicans are primarily fiscally conservative and prefer personal economic responsibility rather than government- supported welfare. Republicans also prefer an individual or employer-based system of health-care as opposed to federal government created programs. Socially, Republicans also are predominately conservative and usually are against policies such as affirmative action for women or minorities and same sex unions. Another aspect of the Republican Party is a primarily strict interpretation of the Constitution, or reading the Constitution as close to the authors’ original intent as possible. Finally, Republicans tend to insist on a stronger national defense in the form of military action as opposed to ideological approaches like consensus-building. Although these ideas are characteristic to many Republicans, there are also divisions within the party such as neoconservatives, libertarians, etc. In order to find out more about the Republican Party, you must research their party and party’s history, and you can begin by going to their website.

Democratic Party

Democrats tend to be associated with a more liberal approach to government. The Democratic Party, for the most part, supports a larger, more active Federal government with limits to the state’s rights. Democrats tend to prefer a more mixed economy as well as more government involvement with social matters as well as the health-care system, and recently have had an environmental component to its politics. Democrats tend to believe that the economy should be mix of a free-market economy with some intervention by the federal government and thus tend to favor policies such as welfare programs that tax in order to create social programs for those who are less fortunate. Many Democrats alsobelieve the government should have a role in the health-care system, so as to ensure that all people have access to affordable health-care. Along with these healthcare programs, Democrats are more in favor of social programs in general, such as affirmative action and federally-created social programs such as Americorps or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families. Democrats also posit that the Constitution can be “loosely interpreted”, and that some of the Constitution’s meaning evolves with time. Also, as of late, Democrats have focused a lot on environmental issues such as global warming and conservation. Finally, Democrats tend to oppose too much military action and instead propose more diplomacy in matters of foreign relations. However, like the Republican Party, there are many divisions in the Democratic Party as well such as liberal democrats, progressive democrats, and civil libertarians. To learn more about the Democratic Party and its ideals, you must research them as well, and you can start by going to their website.

Green Party

The Green Party, although smaller than the Democratic and Republican Party, has gained a lot of support in the national political arena. The Green Party emphasizes environmentalism, non-hierarchical participatory democracy, social justice, and respect for diversity with a focus on nonviolence. The Green Party does not accept corporate support in any form and condemns the use of corporate funds and influence in the government. The Green Party functions around certain Key Values which are: grassroots democracy, social justice and equal opportunity, ecological wisdom, nonviolence, decentralization, community-based economics, gender equality, respect for diversity, personal and global responsibility, and sustainability. To learn more about the Green Party, you can go to their website.

Keep in mind there are many more parties than these three and to really consider which party candidates are affiliated.

Now, here are the Candidates that are running in the State of Pennsylvania and in southeast Delaware County. We have listed them by party and provided their website, so make sure to do your research before voting day!

Governor/Lieutenant Governor

Dan Onerato/Scott Conklin (Democrat)

Tom Corbett/Jim Cawley (Republican)

Brian Nevins (Socialist Workers/Write-In)

Don Dehaven (Write-In)

Senator

Joe Sestak (Democrat)

Pat Toomey (Republican)

Osborne Hart (Socialist Workers/Write-In)

House of Representatives: Congressional District 1

Bob Brady (Democrat)

House of Representatives: Congressional District 7