Nov 6, 2014 4 min read

A changing Washington County electorate aligning itself more with the Republican Party coupled with two embattled Democratic incumbents fighting off questions about their past made for the perfect political storm leading to two of the biggest upsets in the state on election night.

Opinions on whether Republicans now have the upper hand in the county after impressive gains Tuesday night differ depending on whom you ask, but all agree that the area is changing quickly and beginning to turn “red.”

“It certainly was an interesting evening. I can’t say I was that surprised,” said Joseph DiSarro, the political science department chair at Washington & Jefferson College. “I thought it was going to be tough for Democrats to win here because this area is transitioning and in the midst of realignment.”

State Sen. Tim Solobay of Canonsburg and state Rep. Jesse White of Cecil both lost their re-election bids by wide margins to political newcomers – Camera Bartolotta and Jason Ortitay, respectively – following relentless negative campaign ads from outside political forces. But DiSarro added both candidates had issues that made them ripe for attack ads and ultimate defeats.

“Jesse just had too many problems,” DiSarro said of White’s anonymous online personas revealed in May 2013 and his numerous clashes with the Marcellus Shale industry. “He just tempted fate too many times.”

Meanwhile, Solobay’s name was mentioned in a recently unsealed state police search warrant that said he engaged in an “ongoing relationship” with a woman whose husband was shot to death in 2011.

District Attorney Gene Vittone said Solobay is not a suspect in the murder, which remains unsolved, but the public’s perception of the senator clearly changed, DiSarro said.

“In the era of electronic media, that is very serious,” DiSarro said. “That comes out all over the place. There’s no question that had a serious impact.”

DiSarro and others, though, see a Republican wave moving into Washington County despite the Democratic Party having a significant voter registration advantage. There are 74,597 registered Democrats in the county compared to 49,285 Republicans, according to election records. But Gov. Tom Corbett won the county by nearly 2,000 votes in his unsuccessful re-election effort against Democratic Tom Wolf.

“The county’s electorate is in for a shakeup,” Washington County Elections Director Larry Spahr said Wednesday.

Scott Day, the county’s Republican Committee chairman, thinks there were a variety of factors leading to the two big upsets, including redistricting. However, he thinks the area is trending Republican, with many conservative Democrats keeping their registration but switching their allegiances in the voting booth.

“It’s obvious that the voters weren’t happy with those two candidates, but over the last couple of election cycles, things have been trending Republican,” Day said. “Moving forward, this is definitely something to build on.”

Even Washington County Democratic Committee Chairman Ron A. Sicchitano acknowledged his party is losing the “plurality” of voters as its core supporters age. But he thinks the negative ads against Solobay for taking per diems and a public pension – something Sicchitano said every state official accepts – and White for his online antics obscured voters from hearing the candidates’ opinions on important issues.

“I’m upset because the issues were never looked into,” Sicchitano said. “It was a very negative personality thing.”

But Tuesday night’s results aren’t the end for Democrats in the county, DiSarro said, and they can still rebound during the next election cycle in the districts they lost. He pointed to potential 2018 state senate candidates, mentioning state Rep. Brandon Neuman of North Strabane, if Republicans don’t capitalize on their advantage.

“But that doesn’t change the dynamics of the county,” DiSarro said. “I think this area is moving into the Republican column.”