May 24, 2021 4 min read

Warnings of voter backlash against criminal justice reforms seemed to fall flat last week, as primary candidates who back police reform won elections and drove off challengers across the state.

The results bode well for the lawmakers, particularly Democrats, who have proposed a raft of reforms in recent months.

The results won’t be guaranteed until November, when Tuesday’s primary victors face off against general election opponents. But in Democratic-dominated cities, reformers seemed to have a clear edge.

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto lost in an upset to challenger Ed Gainey, whose campaign platform includes “ending the use of military gear” by police and banning solitary confinement at the Allegheny County jail. Voters in the county overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure Tuesday to move toward banning solitary confinement, as well.

In Philadelphia, reform-minded District Attorney Larry Krasner – a national target for tough-on-crime advocates – easily headed off a challenge from a primary opponent backed by the city’s police union. And on both ends of the state, primary voters supported judicial candidates who favor criminal justice reform.

Those victories could embolden lawmakers who have pushed changes to policing in Pennsylvania. In the last two months alone, legislators have proposed legislation or sought support for a police chokehold ban, clearer policies on police body cameras and an end to so-called pretextual stops that make it easier for officers to search cars.

One memo, circulated last month by two Philadelphia lawmakers, sought support for a potential bill to make police unions publicly disclose more demographic and financial information.

Those bills could be a tough sell in a GOP-dominated Legislature: Last year, only two police reform bills made it to Gov. Tom Wolf’s desk, including one that implemented new bias and cultural training for officers.

Nevertheless, the latest election victories show voters – at least in some parts of the state – are amenable to further criminal justice reform.

Reps throw wrench in Jan. 6 probe

Central and Western Pennsylvania Republicans voted uniformly this week against a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, just before their Senate counterparts moved to stop it.

The plan – for a bipartisan investigation of the riot that left several people dead in and around the halls of Congress – ran into stiff opposition Wednesday. While the resolution passed the House 252-175, every Pennsylvania Republican but one voted against it.

Rep. John Joyce, R-13th District, Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-15th District, Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-14th District and Rep. Fred Keller, R-12th District were among those who voted to stop the commission.

More than 30 GOP House members voted to investigate the attack, during which loyalists to then-president Donald Trump entered the Capitol and clashed with police. Hopes for a commission dimmed, however, when Senate Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced his opposition.

“After careful consideration, I’ve made the decision to oppose the House Democrats’ slanted and unbalanced proposal for another commission to study the events of Jan. 6,” McConnell said.

Capitol Police officials criticized the GOP votes in an open letter to both chambers of Congress on Wednesday.

“It is inconceivable that some of the members we protect would downplay the events of Jan. 6,” the letter read. “Member safety was dependent upon the heroic actions of (the Capitol Police). It is a privileged assumption for members to have the point of view that it ‘wasn’t that bad.'”

Lawmakers target academic theories

Meanwhile, Republican House representatives are taking aim at an increasingly common culture-war target: “critical race theory.”

Members of Pennsylvania’s House delegation are cosponsoring at least two bills targeting the academic concept, which analyzes power structures and legal systems as they relate to race and racism. The theory – or collection of theories – has existed in academia for decades, but has recently drawn the ire of elected conservatives who claim it weakens Americans’ unity.

Joyce and Reschenthaler are cosponsors on a resolution that would condemn the theory, which they say “has increasingly infiltrated our nation’s elementary and secondary school classrooms in recent years.”

They are also listed as cosponsors on a bill that would push federal agencies to adhere to an executive order – issued last year by Trump – that barred federal contractors and grant recipients from teaching “the pernicious and false belief that America is an irredeemably racist and sexist country.”

While the bills have little hope of reaching President Joe Biden’s desk, they underscore GOP lawmakers’ ongoing focus on cultural battles.

Ryan Brown covers statewide politics for Ogden Newspapers. He can be reached at rbrown@altoonamirror.com.