Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district

Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district
Current Representative		John Murtha (D)
Population (2000)	646,249
Median income	$30,612
Ethnicity	95.3% White, 3.3% Black, 0.3% Asian, 0.6% Hispanic, 0.1% Native American, 0.1% other
Cook PVI	R+1

Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district is currently represented by Democrat John Murtha. The district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index score of R +1. The district is notable as the only congressional district in the nation that voted for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004 but went for Republican John McCain in 2008.

Geography

The 12th Pennsylvania congressional district is located in southwestern Pennsylvania. It is a heavily Gerrymandered district. It consists of all of Greene County, and parts of Allegheny, Armstrong, Cambria, Fayette, Indiana, Somerset, Washington, and Westmoreland Counties.

The district was drawn specifically for Murtha, including many heavily Democratic regions, while leaving more right-leaning Pittsburgh suburban regions to the 4th or 18th district, and rural conservative regions to the 3rd or 9th district.^{[citation needed]}

The 12th includes all of Greene County, a highly rural region that still has a traditionally Democratic influence due to its labor leanings. In Washington county, the city of Washington, a large and Democratic edge suburb of Pittsburgh is a part of the 12th, as well as the eastern portion of the county, which includes the very Democratic former steel megacenter, the Monongahela Valley region. However, more rural western Washington County and the suburban northern portion of the county (with towns like McDonald and Canonsburg) belongs to the 18th. The western portion of Fayette County, including the city of Uniontown, a labor Democratic stronghold is part of this district, while the rural mountainous eastern portion is a part of the 9th.

The 12th District continues eastward, including southeastern and northeastern parts of Westmoreland County, including the labor Democratic city of Latrobe, while leaving the suburban western part of the county (with towns such as Murrysville) and the generally right-leaning city of Greensburg in the 18th. Portions of Somerset and Cambria Counties are also included in this district. This strip, the part of a large coal area with Democratic leanings, is Murtha's main base. It includes his home city of Johnstown. The 12th also contains a part of Indiana County, mainly the liberal college town of Indiana.

The 12th completes its wrap around the metro Pittsburgh region by ending in the northeastern corner of the city's suburbs, containing middle class regions such as Lower Burrell and the working class suburb of New Kensington. A portion of Armstrong County is also included in the district, including several industrial suburbs such as Freeport and Apollo.

Demographics

This section requires expansion.

History

This section requires expansion.

2006 elections

In the 2006 election, Murtha was re-elected with 61% of the vote. His Republican opponent, Washington County Commissioner Diana Irey, received 39%.

2008 elections

John Murtha[1] won the 2008 election by 58%. Murtha is a former Marine and the first Vietnam Combat Veteran to serve in Congress. He defeated William T. Russell, a United States Army veteran.

List of representatives

References

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present