GALE: Why I Am Running for Re-Election and Not Seeking Endorsement of Party Bosses
Decades of feckless GOP leadership, more focused on enriching themselves than stopping the sprawl of Philadelphia politics into the suburbs, has taken a stark, multi-generational toll on Montgomery County.
Today, the figures speak volumes. Registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans by nearly 100,000 voters countywide and the margin is only growing – so much so that election results have become stunningly one-sided and will be for the foreseeable future.
In the 2022 mid-term elections, Pennsylvania’s Republican candidates for U.S. Senate and Governor were crushed in Montgomery County. In the U.S. Senate race, Republican Dr. Oz was trounced by nearly 30 points. In the governor’s race, Republican Doug Mastriano was obliterated by a full 40 points.
The sad reality is Montgomery County will not be turning red again anytime soon. Anyone who tells you otherwise is disingenuously peddling false hope. My job is to speak the hard truth. Due to the nature of the three-member Montgomery County Board of Commissioners, one minority party representative is elected every four years – which means only one Republican candidate will be elected county commissioner in 2023.
You deserve a strong, unwavering conservative voice who represents your values in that seat. I have served as your sole Republican representative on the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners since I was first elected in 2015, and re-elected in 2019.
I assumed this position knowing the challenges and headwinds of being outnumbered and outvoted, 2-1. Yet, for the last seven years, I have remained steadfast in my commitment to being a watchdog for families and taxpayers of all political affiliations who feel disenfranchised by the stranglehold of big spending, far-left Democrats.
In truth, it would be easier to simply go-along-to-get-along with the Democrat majority and get rich doing so in the spirit of supposed ‘bipartisanship.’ The Montgomery County GOP establishment would love to return to the days in which a lapdog for the Democrat majority occupied the Republican county commissioner seat.
And the reason is simple: Party bosses want a minority commissioner who will play ball by cutting deals so insiders and special interest groups can feed off the sizable crumbs of lucrative county contracts. I reject the politics-as-usual arrogance that has polluted every level of government in America.
I believe in the doctrine of putting people before politics and have done so consistently by opposing four tax hikes and objecting to wasteful spending – most notably, the half-billion dollar courthouse campus project.
Furthermore, last December, when the Democrat commissioners voted to increase the salary of elected officials by 12 percent in the cover of darkness, I blew the whistle by voting down the pay raise and refusing to accept the money personally.
The Democrats should be ashamed of themselves for pulling such a stunt at a time when so many families and seniors are struggling to afford the basics like gasoline and groceries. Even on the most controversial of issues, I am unapologetically clear about where I stand.
From championing law and order when it was unpopular to do so, to fighting for personal liberty in the face of COVID-19 totalitarian overreach, to defending the innocent unborn, I never waiver in the fight to defend common sense and our unalienable, God-given Constitutional rights.
Thanks to the many thousands of you, I am the only Montgomery County Commissioner ever elected without the endorsement or support of either major party establishment. As a healthy consequence, I have tremendous independence.
This independence provides me the unique ability to shine a bright light on corruption and scandal and do what is morally right on behalf of you, the forgotten families and taxpayers. We simply cannot allow party bosses and establishment insiders to revert back to business-as-usual in Montgomery County. Be assured they want me gone so the gravy train returns to normal.
As a matter of fact, due to my continued belief (and it’s shared by many) that party endorsements are a step in the wrong direction at the municipal, county, state and national level, I have been banned from attending the upcoming Montgomery County Republican Committee (MCRC) endorsement convention on Wednesday, March 1st, in King of Prussia at the Crown Plaza Hotel.
That’s right. Since I am not seeking an “endorsement” for the very position I currently hold, MCRC notified me in writing that I am not permitted to speak at, or even step foot in, the March 1 st convention room or I will be escorted out by a private security team hired by MCRC.
Talk about Gestapo-style tactics! I am being shut out and silenced because MCRC leadership does not want me to speak directly to the Republican committee people of Montgomery County and share my opinion that endorsements do little more than serve the selfish interests of party bosses who desire to control handpicked candidates and influence the outcome of primary elections.
However, I will not be deterred and neither should you. Today, I am excited to announce that I will be seeking another term as Montgomery County Commissioner in 2023. In doing so, I look forward to seeing you on the campaign trail, whether it be at a local parade, a church function or in the intimacy of your very own home at one of my “Cup of Joe” events.
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