Pitt-Johnstown College Democrats held a rally Wednesday on campus to support local Democratic candidates and advocate re-electing Rep. Mark Critz.
The rally was held six days before the elections and highlighted five Democratic representatives and senators running for re-elections.
Critz is running against Republican Keith Rothfus for the 12th Congressional District of Pennsylvania.
The 12th congressional district consists of nine counties in southwestern Pennsylvania including Cambria County. Pennsylvania’s 12th congressional district recently absorbed two new districts, Beaver County and North Hills.
Thirty people attended the rally; a majority of the people who attended aligned with the Democratic Party and was a combination of students and members of the community. The Living/Learning Center conference room was set to seat 100 people, with standing room.
Speakers spoke on the key reasons to vote democrat and why they deserve the audiences’ vote, but the topics candidates focused on most were the need to lower the costs of tuitions for higher education. The underlining theme of the rally was the concern to re-elect Critz.
Rep. Bryan Barbin, said that whether you agree with all the candidates here tonight we must agree to vote for Critz.
“When he wins, we all win,” Barbin said.
Pitt-Johnstown Alumni Sen. John Wozniak, said inflation of tuition is absurd, and we need to make education more affordable.
“When I graduated from Pitt-Johnstown, I paid $315 a semester,” Wozniak said.
Critz spoke last and said he would not have been able to attend Indiana University of Pennsylvania if he had not received financial aid, and that it is important to keep the cost of higher education low.
Critz said he has been running for his seat in Congress for virtually four years, and this campaign is the most expensive Congressional campaign in the country.
According to the Sunlight Foundation reporter Jake Harper, “The ‘Toss Up’ race is the highest ranked House race in terms of outside spending, with a total of nearly $10 million.”
Critz finished with words of advice for the members of the College Democrats and the members of the community.
Critz said to help the candidates you support and to be successful in politics.
“We work as a team to help our community… it can be as simple as phone banking or knocking door to door… This is not for pay this is for our country,” Critz said.