EDITORIAL In state legislative races, Toprani, Mihalek, Eichenlaub and Brock are the best choices

For most of the last two decades, you could hear the crickets chirping at election time in the 40th Legislative District, which includes Peters Township, Bethel Park and Upper St. Clair. That’s because Republican incumbent John Maher almost never faced opposition from within the GOP, or, for that matter, from Democrats. It seemed to be Maher’s seat as long as he wanted it.
Well, it turns out that Maher no longer wants it. He is retiring for a fellowship at Cambridge University in England after enduring embarrassing headlines following a drunken driving arrest near Harrisburg last summer. This has brought three Republican candidates into the race, as well as two Democrats. The GOP field includes attorney Natalie Mihalek, an Upper St. Clair resident and U.S. Navy veteran who is making her first bid for elected office; Paul Dixon, a Bethel Park councilman; and James Roman, a Peters resident who was a candidate for Washington County’s recorder of deeds last year. The Democratic competitors are Ed Eichenlaub, a denizen of Bethel Park, and Sharon Guidi, a Peters resident and political newcomer.
Dixon did not respond to requests by phone, email and social media to talk with our editorial board. Roman and Milhalek did, however, and between the two of them, we think Milhalek is the better candidate. She has pledged to help veterans, and is proposing a real estate tax exemption for veterans with disabilities related to their service. Mihalek also wants to modify the commonwealth’s veterans’ preference in hiring, and open it to all who served and were honorably discharged. Democrats who are hoping to wrest the seat away from Republicans for the first time in at least 50 years would be best served by nominating Eichenlaub, who has a varied background that includes work as an Allegheny County Jail caseworker and restaurant inspector. A candidate for state Senate in 2016, the variety of Eichenlaub’s resume and his deeper political background make him the superior option.
In the 49th Legislative District, which encompasses such Mon Valley communities as Monongahela, Belle Vernon, Charleroi and California, two Democrats are vying to run against Republican incumbent Bud Cook in the fall. Former Washington County district attorney Steve Toprani is running, as is Randy Barli, a perennial candidate. Despite switching from the Republican to Democratic parties – Toprani says he is unhappy with the party’s drift to the right – Democrats should not hesitate to support him. Not only does he have experience as a district attorney, but has also served as a member of the Ringgold School Board and has represented a number of local governments as an attorney. His background by itself makes him the best choice.
State Rep. Jason Ortitay will be making a bid for a third term in the 46th Legislative District this fall, and there are two viable Democratic opponents hoping to win the right to compete against him. Byron Timmins is a Cecil Township resident who says he is running for office to serve residents and not for personal gain or higher office, and Rueben Brock, a psychologist and California University of Pennsylvania assistant professor who says he wants to run against “the wealthy and the political elite.” Both candidates come to the race with an admirable sense of idealism and a solid grasp of state and local issues, but we were struck by Brock’s sense of passion and engagement. Democratic voters should give him their support.
The 46th Legislative District includes such Allegheny County communities as Bridgeville, Collier and South Fayette townships, along with Washington County municipalities like Cecil, Canton and Robinson townships, Burgettstown and McDonald.