Law enforcement endorsements split between Bob Casey and Dave McCormick

In the battle over law enforcement endorsements, Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate candidates have each picked up nods in recent months. 

Three-term Democratic incumbent Bob Casey received an endorsement from the Guardian Civic League – a group representing active and retired Black police officers – in Philadelphia Friday. 

Casey, joined by Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal and Guardian Civic League leadership, said he admires people who commit themselves to protecting and serving their communities. 

“What law enforcement officers have to do every day, the obstacles they have to overcome,and the lives they have to lead often, are quietly triumphant lives,” Casey said Friday, adding that protecting children and the next generation is critically important. 

“That means not just talking a good game about how you’re supporting law and order…but that you’re investing in the next generation so they grow up with a shot (at) the American dream – they grow up with a shot at making it.”

Linda Pace, a former patrol officer and current vice president of membership at the Guardian Civic League, said Casey has been a “true partner” of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia police throughout his career. 

“He listens to concerns of law enforcement and he understands what we need here in the City of Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania to keep our state and city safe, whether (through) securing resources or delivering funding in order to hire new officers,” Pace said, referencing a deleted post from McCormick this week where they mistook Philadelphia, Mississippi as Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “Meanwhile, his opponent, Dave McCormick, demonstrated this week that he can’t even identify what a Philadelphia police car even looks like.” 

In July, the Pennsylvania Fraternal Order of Police and Pennsylvania State Troopers Association endorsed Casey’s opponent, GOP nominee Dave McCormick. These endorsements came after the FOP and PSTA backed Democratic candidates in previous statewide elections, including Casey’s reelection bid in 2012. 

“It is an honor to have the support of tens of thousands of Pennsylvania men and women in blue,” McCormick said in a statement following the endorsements. “Joe Biden and Bob Casey’s soft-on-crime agenda has failed them and made our Commonwealth more dangerous. It’s time our men and women in blue had a leader in Washington who will fight tirelessly to get them the support they deserve.”

When asked about the FOP and state trooper endorsements, Casey said he respects their decision but it won’t slow his efforts to connect with police statewide. 

“They make their determination and I respect that,” Casey told City & State. “But it's not going to stop me from earning the support of law enforcement across the state.”

The dueling endorsements come as public safety and crime continue to be  key issues for many urban voters. In May, a Philadelphia Inquirer/New York Times/Siena College poll showed about half of Pennsylvania voters think crime is a major problem in the state and that Philadelphia voters were far more likely than other Pennsylvanians to say crime is a major issue in the state, with 73% saying it is compared to 54% of voters in the Philly suburbs. 

While violent crime was a central talking point throughout Philadelphia’s mayoral election last year, it remains to be seen whether public safety will be a factor for undecided voters in November. 

Crime rates and shootings spiked across the country in 2020 but have been declining in recent years, including in Philadelphia, where homicides were nearly halved and shootings were down 34% in the first half of 2024 when compared to the same period last year.