This week’s biggest Winners & Losers

Internal polling commissioned by Democratic congressional candidate Janelle Stelson shows the former WGAL anchor with a significant lead in the 10th Congressional District Democratic primary race: She is 20 points ahead of Harrisburg City Councilmember Shamaine Daniels, who is the next highest-polling candidate. With a little over a month to go until the primary election, Stelson appears to be picking up momentum ahead of April 23.

This may be the one time you’ll see an incumbent and their challenger side-by-side with Ws. But this week, the 10th District Member of Congress was on the right side of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. SCOTUS’ 9-0 ruling in Colorado shot down attempts to remove Donald Trump and those involved in the Jan. 6 insurrection from the ballot under the 14th Amendment. With SCOTUS leaving the power of the insurrection clause in the hands of Congress, there is little to stand in the way of Trump and Perry making it onto the ballot. 

A newcomer in Philadelphia and progressive politics, City Councilmember Nicolas O’Rourke is making a name for himself within the Working Families Party. O’Rourke is set to deliver the progressive response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Thursday night. Although the third party’s response may not move the needle come November, the selection makes it clear the party wants O’Rourke in the national spotlight going forward.

SEPTA transit police and officials are on high alert this week after four shootings took place involving bus riders. One shooting on Wednesday resulted in eight high school students being hit, prompting police and city officials to say an “aggressive” approach is needed to combat gun violence – the same week New Yorkers began dealing with more police and bag checks on the subway.

The York County Board of Elections is the target of a new lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, which accuses the county of violating the state’s Election Code by reportedly refusing to allow nonpartisan observers to watch the county canvass votes in November 2023. Marian Schneider, a senior voting rights counsel at the ACLU of Pennsylvania, said in a statement that Pennsylvania counties “are on notice that they must follow the letter of the law when it comes to managing elections – or they can expect legal action.”

The UPMC Children’s Hospital is currently facing a lawsuit from a former employee who says he experienced racial discrimination on the job and was fired for reporting it. According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Caleb Ferguson, a Black man who worked for the hospital, said a white coworker knitted a monkey doll and gave it his name. Ferguson is seeking front and back pay, as well as compensatory damages, according to the paper.