\ud83d\udcc5 There are 18 days until Election Day.<\/p>\n
The Harrisburg congressional contest\u2019s theatrics have reached a crescendo as the Nov. 3 election nears. This week on the debate stage, candidates held nothing back. <\/p>\n
\ud83c\udfa4 I\u2019m Michelle Baruchman, the campaigns and elections reporter at The Inquirer. I\u2019m based in Philadelphia, but this week I\u2019m focused on a race 100 miles west in Harrisburg. Republican Rep. Scott Perry and Democrat Janelle Stelson, a former TV anchor, debated each other for the second time<\/a> in two years to represent Pennsylvania\u2019s 10th Congressional District.<\/p>\n It was spicy. <\/p>\n But as Stelson and Perry head to an election rematch, after just over 5,100 votes separated them in 2024, voters in the key swing district have become<\/a> even more pointed in their rhetoric than the candidates. One voter said he \u201cdespises\u201d Perry, who he called an \u201celection denier\u201d; Stelson is \u201cthe crazy lady\u201d who \u201cdoesn\u2019t have decent values,\u201d another voter told The Inquirer\u2019s Al Lubrano<\/a>.<\/p>\n In this edition:<\/p>\n \ud83d\uddf3\ufe0f The more you know: Our 2026 midterms voter guide is here<\/a>!<\/p>\n \ud83d\uddf3\ufe0f Money, money, money: Elon Musk and a national GOP group are pouring millions into competitive Pa. congressional races<\/a>.<\/p>\n \ud83d\uddf3\ufe0f Big Dom makes a big promise: At a Philly Dems fundraiser with some of the biggest names in Pennsylvania politics, Big Dom reassured Eagles fans<\/a>. (Go Birds.)<\/p>\n \u2014 Michelle Baruchman, Sam Janesch Gillian McGoldrick and Fallon Roth, (pa2026@inquirer.com)<\/a><\/p>\n If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here<\/a>.<\/p>\n The latest<\/p>\n Data dive<\/p>\n Trump and U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick aren\u2019t exactly best friends. <\/p>\n The Bucks County Republican votes for the president\u2019s priorities the least out of any House GOP lawmaker<\/a> (at a rate of 70%). And Trump, far from shy about punishing Republicans he considers disloyal, suggested in the spring<\/a> that Fitzpatrick\u2019s future might not \u201cwork out well\u201d as a result.<\/p>\n So it caught our eye this week when the Trump-aligned MAGA Inc. PAC dropped $100,000 on digital ads supporting Fitzpatrick\u2019s reelection. <\/p>\n The spending was among dozens of other investments by the massively funded PAC as Trump looks to keep GOP control of Congress \u2014 and as national Republicans also step in to save the last Republican in the Philadelphia region.<\/p>\n Earlier this week, the Congressional Leadership Fund \u2014 which is aligned with House Speaker Mike Johnson \u2014 redirected $3.6 million<\/a> to boost Fitzpatrick in his tough race against Democrat Bob Harvie. <\/p>\n Elon Musk, meanwhile, hasn\u2019t used his America PAC to help Fitzpatrick (at least not yet), but has thrown $1.5 million behind three other vulnerable Pennsylvania Republicans.<\/p>\n We\u2019ll be continuing to dive into the spending spree in the final few weeks of the election. That includes digging all the way down to critical state-level races, where Pennsylvania Senate Democrats and Republicans have spent about $27.7 million in five districts<\/a> that could give Democrats their first Harrisburg trifecta in three decades.<\/p>\n Campaign scrapple<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc40 A big tent: Former U.S. Rep. George Santos (R., N.Y.), whose seven-year prison sentence for fraud and identity theft was commuted by Trump last year, is a likely voter for\u2026 Gov. Josh Shapiro? Santos, who lives in Monroe County, posted on X<\/a> that a Democratic volunteer called him to solicit his vote in the upcoming Nov. 3 election, despite his status as a registered Republican<\/a>. Santos said he\u2019ll vote for Republican U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan in Pennsylvania\u2019s 8th Congressional District, but he\u2019s also leaning toward supporting Shapiro\u2019s reelection because the Democrat \u201cknows how to run this state.\u201d He also had a message for the state GOP: \u201cWake up, Republicans \u2018cause they\u2019re calling the opposition!\u201d<\/p>\n \ud83e\udd1d Blast from the past: Former U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, the centrist Democrat turned independent, endorsed U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican who says he wishes he could be an independent. In a video posted to Fitzpatrick\u2019s social media, Manchin said that in their years working together on Capitol Hill the Republican lawmaker \u201cwasn\u2019t worried about his politics. He wasn\u2019t worried about political parties.\u201d <\/p>\n \ud83c\udf7c Baby o\u2019clock: A number of Democratic members of the state House and Senate launched a new Kids & Families Caucus this week. The effort, being led by members with small children, aims to better represent the needs of families with young children who are grappling with the high cost of childcare and other needs. It\u2019s one of several ways Democrats hope they can advance changes for working families if they win a trifecta in November<\/a>.<\/p>\n Gov. Josh Shapiro visited The Inquirer\u2019s newsroom earlier this week to speak with our reporters. (Treasurer Stacy Garrity swung by the newsroom last month<\/a>)<\/p>\n Look out for that story next week.<\/a> In the meantime, read our coverage of the governor\u2019s new federal PAC. <\/a><\/p>\n \ud83d\udc40 What we\u2019re watching <\/p>\n \ud83d\udcdd Pennsylvania\u2019s voter registration deadline<\/a> is Monday. We\u2019ll be watching the final registration push from both parties \u2014 often a signal of enthusiasm levels as voters pay more attention just before Election Day.<\/p>\n This time last year, Republicans were on track to completely erase what had been a massive 916,000 voter registration advantage for Democrats at the beginning of the Trump era. But Democrats have spent 2026 on a mission to reverse the trend \u2014 and they\u2019ve had some success<\/a>. As of Monday, Democrats held a 234,500 voter registration edge after a year of gains.<\/p>\n For more information on how to vote and who is on your ballot, check out our voter guide here. <\/a><\/p>\n In a room including a former president, the governor and the mayor, there was one person there who could talk about an issue Philadelphians actually care about: Big Dom DiSandro. <\/p>\n DiSandro \u2014 or \u201cBig Dem,\u201d as our colleague Anna Orso nicknamed the Eagles\u2019 head of security<\/a> for the night \u2014 spoke briefly at the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee\u2019s annual fall fundraiser as the party celebrated former U.S. Rep. Bob Brady\u2019s 40th year at the helm. Former President Joe Biden and Gov. Josh Shapiro spoke, too, in addition to a number of other elected leaders.<\/p>\n DiSandro, who also spoke when the Birds visited Trump in the White House last year<\/a>, used his brief remarks to say Brady is \u201csomeone I consider family\u201d \u2014 and to promise that the 2-3 Eagles<\/a> would get back on track, a top issue for most Philadelphians. <\/p>\n Now we have to just need to figure out how Big Dom can protect the team from any on-field injuries<\/a>. (Heal up, Jalen Hurts \ud83d\ude4f)<\/p>\n