In the meantime, please take a few minutes to thank the members of the legislative branches of government who worked on our behalf to encourage the Supreme Court toward this position.

US Senate
Bob Casey

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Arlen Specter

• Twitter – @SenArlenSpecter
• Facebook

US Congress
Jason Altmire

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Christopher Carney

• Twitter – @ChrisCarneyPa10
• Facebook

Charlie Dent

• Twitter – @DentforCongress
• Facebook

Jim Gerlach

• Twitter – @JimGerlach
• Facebook

Tim Holden

• Twitter – @TimHoldenPA17
• Facebook

Paul Kanjorski

• Twitter – @kanjo4congress
• Facebook

Patrick Murphy

• Facebook

Tim Murphy

• Twitter – @RepTimMurphy
• Facebook

Joe Pitts

• Twitter – @JoePitts4PA
• Facebook

Todd Platts

• Facebook

Bill Shuster

• Twitter – @RepBillShuster
• Facebook

Glenn Thompson

• Twitter – @CongressmanGT
• Facebook

State Officials
Tom Corbett

• Twitter – @CorbettforGov
• Facebook

Joe Scarnati

Karen Boback

• Facebook

Michele Brooks

Bryan Cutler

• Twitter – @RepBryanCutler
• Facebook

Bill DeWeese

Glen Grell

• Facebook

Rob Kauffman

• Facebook

Mark Keller

• Facebook

John Maher

Daryl Metcalfe

• Twitter – @DarylMetcalfe

Merle Phillips

Kathy Rapp

RoseMarie Swanger

• Facebook

Will Tallman

• Facebook

Katie True

District 9
Bill Shuster, Republican

• Twitter – @RepBillShuster
• Facebook
• YouTube

District 10
David Madeira, Republican

• Twitter – @DavidJMadeira
• Facebook
• YouTube
• Flickr

Thomas Marino, Republican

• Twitter – @Marino4Congress
• Facebook

Malcolm Derk, Republican

• Twitter – @derkforcongress
• Facebook
• MySpace
• Flickr

Christopher Carney, Democrat

• Twitter – @ChrisCarneyPa10
• Facebook

District 11
Lou Barletta, Republican

• Twitter – @loubarletta
• Facebook
• YouTube

Chris Paige, Republican

• Twitter – @ChrisPaige10
• Facebook

Paul Kanjorski, Democrat

• Twitter – @kanjo4congress
• Facebook

Corey O’Brien, Democrat

• Twitter – @CoreyDOBrien
• Facebook
• YouTube
• Flickr

We’ll feature more candidates in the future.

Right now, eyes are focused on PA-12. Deceased Congressman John Murtha was a dedicated advocate for the Second Amendment, and many of his possible replacements are unknowns. Last weekend, local Democratic activists selected longtime aide Mark Critz to run for the special election to complete the term, and they will likely back him during the primary election to be held the same day. However, the Democratic state committee is expected to meet today to issue the formal endorsement for the special election seat, and that may not be Critz. Though he has local support, the state officials may opt for someone else to appear on the ballot with local support.

On the Republican side, local party leaders will meet on Thursday to select a candidate for the special election, and presumably give party support for the primary election. Unlike the Democratic Party, the state leaders in the GOP cannot override the local decision.

Beyond the the southwest corner, there are other races heating up. PoliticsPA has started a new feature to examine the competitiveness of various Congressional races each month. The race for PA-12 is considered only the fourth most competitive race. Their predicted hotbed of activity? PA-7, the seat vacated by Congressman Joe Sestak.

For known incumbents, gun owners in PA-11 will have their hands full with the race featuring pro-gun Congressman Paul Kanjorski. Early polling indicates he is very weak and may be defeated. Up in the northwest corner, Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper will face a big challenge. In a record year for Democrats in 2008, she just squeezed out a 7,000 vote victory over the incumbent representative. This year may be the best chance to oust this F-rated freshman in PA-3.

At little closer to the Southeast, we have the 7th, 8th, and 9th most competitive races with PA-15 (pro-gun Congressman Charlie Dent), PA-8 (with leaning anti-gun Congressman Patrick Murphy), and PA-6 (with pro-gun Congressman Jim Gerlach). These are vital races for Pennsylvania gun owners, and we need to turn out long before election day to make sure the right men and women take office.

While most campaigns are wrapping up their signature collection efforts, there are still plenty of activities for those looking to give a little of their time in support of the Second Amendment. If you want to help out, just contact us and we’ll let you know what is going on in your area.

UPDATE: The Democratic Party has formally selected Mark Critz to run in the special election on May 18 to fulfill the rest of his boss’s term. It is expected that he will have challengers for the other election that day – the primary election for the regular November election.

So far, Republicans plan to target the following districts and members: PA-3 Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper, PA-4 Rep. Jason Altmire, PA-7 Rep. Joe Sestak*, PA-10 Rep. Chris Carney, PA-11 Rep. Paul Kanjorski, and PA-12 Rep. Jack Murtha.

To the best of our knowledge, such an extensive and detailed list has not been released by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. However, the party does expect to spend money to take Rep. Jim Gerlach’s district (PA-6) when he vacates it to run for Governor and will try to unseat Rep. Charlie Dent (PA-15).

The combined lists represent five seats currently rated A up for grabs (PA-4, 6, 11, 12, & 15), as well as one B rated seat (PA-10) and two F rated seats (PA-3 & 7). At this time, we do not have information about any likely competitors and their grades.

It would appear based on this information that the focus in districts 8, 13, and 19 will be on statewide and local offices with NRA endorsed candidates in 2010. As we get closer to the elections, we’ll have a better idea of competitive races and will keep you informed of relevant issues.

* Rep. Sestak is expected to vacate his Congressional seat to challenge Sen. Arlen Specter for his Senate seat. Therefore, this will likely be an open race with room for improvement from either side of the aisle since Rep. Sestak has consistently served as a voice of anti-gun organizations and last held an F rating with NRA.