The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) announced on Wednesday that Democratic candidate Ashley Ehasz, a U.S. Army combat veteran, has been added to their Red to Blue program.
Ehasz is challenging Republican incumbent Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, a four-term Republican from Middletown Township, in the First Congressional District race.
“This endorsement clearly signals that the DCCC sees PA-01 as key to flipping the House this November,” according to a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee statement.
In April, the National Republican Congressional Committee dismissed Ehasz’s chances, stating she had “no chance of beating” Fitzpatrick.
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Suzan DelBene, a congresswoman from Washington state, praised Ehasz’s military service and underscored the importance of a potential Democratic victory in the district.
“Ashley Ehasz has always fought for our fundamental freedoms and was willing to lay her life on the line to defend our democracy. At a time when anti-abortion extremists like Brian Fitzpatrick are bending the knee to Donald Trump in pursuit of a national abortion ban, Pennsylvanians deserve a leader like Ashley who will codify Roe v. Wade and protect a woman’s right to choose,” she said.
Ehasz welcomed being included in the Red to Blue program.
“Being part of the DCCC’s Red to Blue program shows that the path to flipping the House, defending democracy, and protecting our reproductive freedom runs through Pennsylvania’s First. In Congress, I’ll fight for our freedom and our right to choose, just as I did in the Army,” she said.
The First Congressional District covers all of Bucks County and part of Montgomery County. It is a critical battleground and considered a bellwether district.
President Joe Biden won the district by 5 points in the 2020 election.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee highlighted the district’s voting history and called it a “prime pick up for Democrats in 2024 to overcome the narrow GOP House majority.”
Ehasz previously lost to Fitzpatrick by nearly 10 percentage points in the 2022 election, but she has remained confident about her prospects in 2024.
The Democratic candidate has garnered endorsements from EMILY’s List, NewDems Action Fund, VoteVets, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and the American Federation of Teachers PA.
Last year, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee listed Fitzpatrick among the candidates they aim to defeat.
While Fitzpatrick was endorsed by former President Donald Trump in 2020, he has shown a willingness to break with his party on certain issues. He has easily held back primary and general election challengers since 2016.
Ehasz will need to raise significant funds in her effort to defeat Fitzpatrick, a prolific fundraiser who had $3.6 million in the bank in April. GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson held a fundraiser for Fitzpatrick last week, while Democrats have touted Ehasz’s fundraising haul of roughly $650,000 last quarter.
The Fitzpatrick campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
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