Metcalfe posts solid victory
CRANBERRY TWP — Two years ago state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe had a close call in the Republican primary, defeating write-in candidate Gordon Marburger by only 540 votes.
Tuesday the two men faced off again, but this time it was not nearly as close.
Metcalfe of Cranberry Township unofficially received 7,870 votes to 5,301 for Marburger of Adams Township.
The margin of Metcalfe's victory was 59.7 percent to 40.2 percent.
“I am thankful to the voters who have entrusted me with being their nominee in the 12th District,” Metcalfe said Tuesday night.
He will seek a 10th term in office in November when he will face Democratic candidate Christian Rieger of Cranberry.
Rieger ran unopposed in the primary.
The 12th District covers Adams, Clinton, Cranberry, Forward, Middlesex and Penn townships as well as Callery, Mars, Seven Fields and Valencia.
Metcalfe said he and his volunteers fought against multiple union-backed campaigns attacking him.
“The voters saw through the campaign of lies and deception that Marburger led with his union comrades,” he said.
There were eight mailers sent out by independent groups attacking him, Metcalfe said.
Though the mailers didn't specifically name Marburger, people from the AFL-CIO and Working America campaigned for Marburger, he said.
Those groups did not officially endorse Marburger, according to their websites.
Marburger could not be reached for comment Tuesday night or this morning.
A hotly contested GOP presidential race brought many Republicans to the polls Tuesday, but Metcalfe said the 12th District race also brought voters out.
“We had voters in multiple precincts sharing with my family that they were there to make sure that I got re-elected,” he said.
He said he is confident that Republicans and many Democrats will support him in the fall and that he will return to Harrisburg for two more years.
Metcalfe said he plans to continue the work that has made him a success so far in his career, including fighting for lower taxes.
“When I go back to Harrisburg, I'll be fighting on behalf of the people who sent me there to protect their pockets,” he said.
In 2014 after Metcalfe beat Marburger in the GOP primary, Metcalfe defeated Democrat Lisa Zucco in the general election.
