Eugene DePasquale (l) and Jared Solomon (Capital-Star composite)
Throughout the campaign for the Democratic Party’s nomination for Pennsylvania attorney general, the five candidates have often avoided taking direct shots at each other. With the April 23 primary just days away, State Rep. Jared Solomon (D-Philadelphia) has released a 15-second ad sharply criticizing former Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale over past votes he on weapons and elections. The ad casts Solomon and DePasquale as the frontrunners in the race.
“Democrats, for AG there are only two left,” a voiceover says at the start of the ad, as the words “Poll: DePasquale, Solomon Lead in AG Race” appear at the top of the screen.
Solomon’s campaign told the Capital-Star that the poll referenced in the ad was an internal Data for Progress poll conducted April 9-11 that surveyed 474 likely Democratic primary voters. That internal poll showed DePasquale in first place in the crowded primary and Solomon in second place, according to the Solomon campaign.
The Capital-Star asked to independently review the survey, but the campaign declined to make the results available and instead shared an image of what they said was the first page of the survey.
There has been no widespread public polling in the race.
The ad quotes two of DePasquale’s votes, claiming he “voted with Republicans on guns and elections.” The two votes referenced in the ad date back to 2011, when DePasquale was a state representative in the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
The first vote was House Bill 40sponsored by then-Republican Rep. Scott Perry, the bill passed the House on a 164-37 vote on April 12 and was signed into law by Gov. Tom Corbett later that year. The Associated Press reported that the bill expanded the right to use deadly force in self-defense.
Republicans were united in their support of this legislation, while Democrats were divided, although a majority of Democrats also voted in favor of the bill. Then-State Representatives Brendan Boyle, Matt Bradford, and Josh Shapiro also voted in favor of this legislation, while Dwight Evans, Dan Frankel, and Cherelle Parker voted against the bill.
The ad also claims that Solomon has “a lifetime F from the NRA” and calls him “a champion for voting rights.”
DePasquale’s campaign responded by pointing out that DePasquale had an “F” rating from the NRA in both of his previous bids for statewide office in 2016 and 2020. In this race, according to the DePasquale campaign, he has an ” ?” assessment because he refused to complete the questionnaire.
“Our opponent’s ad is intentionally misleading and misrepresents Eugene’s position on firearms,” DePasquale’s campaign told the Capital-Star. “We believe that our opponents see us as the frontrunner and are trying to create a wedge problem where there is none. Eugene has always been a supporter of stricter gun safety laws and regulations, and his voting record shows that.”
The DePasquale campaign added that he supports banning civilian access to military-style weapons, universal background checks and red flag laws, cracking down on gun violence and ghost guns, and emphasizing mental health as a priority in addressing gun deaths by suicide.
The second invoice referenced in the ad was a vote to approve the Republican Party’s 2011 map of Pennsylvania’s congressional districts. A significant majority of Republicans voted in favor of this legislation, which passed the state House on a 136-61 vote, while a majority of Democrats voted. against it.
The DePasquale campaign did not respond directly to this vote in a request for comment, but he mentioned it NBC10 in 2014 that he voted for it because it made the congressional district in south-central Pennsylvania more competitive for Democrats.
Former Philadelphia Chief Public Defender Keir Bradford-Grey, former Bucks County Solicitor Joe Khan and Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer are also vying for the Democratic Party’s nomination for attorney general.
Salomon was reported to be promoting to DePasquale in the final days of the Pa. attorney general campaign. first appeared on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
