Marci Mustello

State Sen. Marci Mustello, R-11th, defeated Ryan Covert in a race to the wire in last week's primary election, but she said the two have similar ideals.

“We all have to work together,” Mustello said. “We need to keep this seat in Republican hands.”

Mustello said she and Covert both believe in supporting Second Amendment rights and an anti-abortion platform.

“I think he ran a good race and (it was) a hard-fought primary,” Mustello said.

The preliminary vote counts up to about midnight on election night showed Covert as the victor, with a disclaimer stating the write-in votes had not yet been added to the unofficial totals.

“I saw the numbers come in, and I knew they seemed very low,” Mustello said of the initial results.

Then she noticed the disclaimer and hoped the write-in ballots would lift her to victory.

“I knew I possibly hadn't won,” Mustello said. “You've got to wait until the end of it all.”

When the write-in votes were added around 12:15 a.m., Mustello pulled ahead by more than 700 votes for a tally of 5,003 votes to Covert's 4,271.

“It's an honor to have been chosen as the Republican nominee by the voters of the 11th District,” Mustello said. “I look forward to continuing the work I started a year ago and being a strong voice for Pennsylvania.”

She said voicing concerns of business owners, nonprofit organizations, the agricultural sector and everyone in the 11th District will continue to be her top priorities moving forward.

She and her Republican colleagues collaborated to help business owners navigate what Mustello called the red tape in Harrisburg as they sought waivers for their shops to open during the coronavirus pandemic shutdown ordered by Gov. Tom Wolf.

“I'm looking for the economy to rebound,” Mustello said.

She also wants to upgrade the state unemployment system, so that claims will not languish for weeks before payments are made.

Mustello looks forward to doing her part in improving economic development.

“We really need to focus on economic development for our community, our county and our region,” she said.

Mustello is anxious to move forward a bill regarding human trafficking that she introduced and which has passed in the House of Representatives.

House Bill 2176 passed in the House just before the pandemic struck, Mustello said, and she looks forward to monitoring the bill's progress through the Senate.

“I really want to revisit that issue because it needs to be revisited,” Mustello said. “It's in our backyard.”

One aspect of her work she most enjoys is getting results for those in the 11th District who are having issues, such as not receiving their tax refunds and other problems.

“That has been very rewarding,” Mustello said.

In November, Mustello will face Democrat Sam Doctor, who she beat in the May 2019 special election for the 11th District. She welcomes the support of Covert's voters.

“I look forward to earning the votes of those who voted for my opponent,” she said.

Before winning the special election in May 2019, Mustello was a local party official and staffer for U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-16th.