Live election results:
What’s at stake: Voters in this north-of-the-rivers district have a rematch before them: two-term incumbent Emily Kinkead once again faces Republican teacher Matt Kruth after having bested him in 2022 by a 61-to-39 margin. The 20th is a more suburban district than it once was, with a slice of city neighborhoods including Brighton Heights joined to sprawling Ross Township and a handful of Ohio Valley suburbs.
District map:
Emily Kinkead
Kinkead is one of a handful of younger women who have joined the Allegheny County delegation in the past half-decade. She’s also among the most outspoken, having sharply criticized not just Republicans in Harrisburg but at times fellow Democrats back home, as she did in decrying a Democratic candidate for Allegheny County Executive last year. Kinkead has been a staunchly progressive vote on issues ranging from marijuana legalization to prison reform and reproductive rights.
Party: Democratic
Place of residence: Brighton Heights, Pittsburgh
Education: B.S., B.A., Bloomsburg University; J.D., University of Pittsburgh School of Law
Current occupation: Pennsylvania House of Representatives, attorney
Related experience: Member of the state House (2021-present)
Supporters/endorsements: Kinkead is backed by a slew of labor organizations including the statewide AFL-CIO, as well as fellow Democratic politicians and progressive advocacy groups that include Planned Parenthood and Conservation Voters of PA
Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn
Total fundraising (reported as of 10/28/24):
Total raised (2024): $66,294.91
(2023 ending cash balance: $17,997.60)
Total spent (2024): $46,524.32
WESA Candidate Survey
State policies can help determine the health of the local economy — by adjusting tax rates, imposing or relaxing regulations, and so on. What policies do you think Harrisburg should pursue to improve the state’s economic performance?
I am proudly pro-union and support the efforts of workers to receive fair and just compensation for their work. Expanding labor rights will lift more Pennsylvanians into the middle class, which will lift the economy with it. The other critical investments we can make are in infrastructure, public education, and higher education or trades training. We have a shortage of skilled workers and the state can invest in closing that gap.
Pennsylvania’s approach to education funding, which relies heavily on local property taxes, has long been criticized for burdening homeowners and for creating gaps between rich and poor communities. What should the legislature do to address those concerns, and are there other reforms you think are needed to improve the education students receive?
As the Commonwealth Court ruled, we cannot continue to fund the lion’s share of school costs on the backs of property owners in the various districts. The inequity it creates is not just unconstitutional but unconscionable. Though the investments made this year were historic, it is not nearly enough to achieve equity in our school districts and we did not commit to a recurring expenditure so we will have to fight again next year for the same kind of investment, and each budget moving forward. Also, we need to invest in the whole child by providing universal school meals to ensure kids have all the resources they need to learn.
Nearby states have legalized the adult recreational use of marijuana, and there have been proposals to do so in Pennsylvania, possibly through new distributors or through existing state stores or medical marijuana dispensaries. Do you support legalization, and if so, who should be allowed to sell the product?
I support legalization and I am a prime sponsor of HB 2500, a bill to legalize adult-use cannabis. My bill would allow private companies to sell the product with a strong focus on ensuring social equity applicants get the first crack at recreational licenses. I do not support the state store model. It would be unjust for the state to be the sole beneficiary of the sale of a product after it incarcerated individuals for selling or using that same product. We must give individuals from the communities harmed and those who were criminalized because of a substance that would now be legal the opportunity to benefit from its sale.
Arguments over voting provisions — such as mail-in balloting, “drop boxes” and voter verification requirements — have become a part of the electoral landscape. How well do you think our election systems work now, and what if any changes to our state voting laws would you support?
Our election systems work incredibly well and absolutely can be trusted. The problem with our elections systems is not that they are not trustworthy or secure. It is that too many Americans are denied their right to vote in the name of preventing fraud. The issue is not and has never been voter fraud — it is voter disenfranchisement. I support expanding automatic voter registration, early voting, and making Election Day a holiday, among other measures to increase voter turnout and engagement. I support providing additional funding to our counties to run elections as well as allowing mail-in ballot pre-canvassing.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe in 2022, there have been discussions in state capitals across the country about whether to limit abortion access or expand it. What changes, if any, would you favor to the state's current abortion laws?
I believe abortion access is a critical piece of comprehensive reproductive care, decisions about which should be made by individuals in consultation with medical professionals. In addition to being an unabashed advocate for access to women’s health care and reproductive rights, I’ve been proud to support bills that would further increase those rights and access. Most recently, I was proud to vote for a bill that would ensure that Pennsylvania law enforcement cannot cooperate with the efforts of other states to criminalize reproductive health care and travel to access it.
Matt Kruth
Kruth’s 2022 run against Kinkead met with rough sledding, and he lost a township commissioner race the year before that. But the longtime local educator is making another run at state office, emphasizing a cautiously conservative tack on an array of cultural issues and budget concerns and backing scholarship programs for public schools.
Party: Republican
Place of residence: Ross Township
Education: B.A., Grove City College; M.S.Ed., Duquesne University
Current occupation: Teacher, Pittsburgh Public Schools
Related experience: As a teacher, Kruth says he has “worked with the most vulnerable and upwardly mobile families” and has seen “not only the strengths of our community but also the needs.”
Supporters/endorsements: Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 91, anti-abortion-rights group LifePAC
Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Total fundraising (as of 5/13/24):
Total raised (2024): $3,801.95
(2023 ending cash balance: $49.81)
Total spent (2024): $440.93
WESA Candidate Survey
State policies can help determine the health of the local economy —by adjusting tax rates, imposing or relaxing regulations, and so on. What policies do you think Harrisburg should pursue to improve the state’s economic performance?
Pennsylvania was recently ranked 41st for the economy and 44th for fiscal stability. We must do better. That starts with rolling back regulations on businesses so that they can be successful and benefit our economy. Additionally, we need to rein in out-of-control spending and instead spend within our means. The budget increased to $47.6 billion and is projected to deplete the general fund balance by next year. The next state legislature will likely have to decide between cutting spending or raising taxes. I will choose to cut spending and ensure struggling Pennsylvanians are not further burdened.
Pennsylvania’s approach to education funding, which relies heavily on local property taxes, has long been criticized for burdening homeowners and for creating gaps between rich and poor communities. What should the legislature do to address those concerns, and are there other reforms you think are needed to improve the education students receive?
Property taxes are crushing Pennsylvanians, and in some cases, forcing them out of their homes. This disproportionally affects older Pennsylvania's with no school-aged children who continue to have to pay taxes on a home that they own outright. Property taxes as a funding stream for education is an archaic idea and needs to be eliminated. More importantly, we cannot continue to throw money at schools without first addressing what isn’t working for our students. As a teacher, I understand the legislation that is needed to ensure all Pennsylvania’s students receive the best possible education.
Nearby states have legalized the adult recreational use of marijuana, and there have been proposals to do so in Pennsylvania, possibly through new distributors or through existing state stores or medical marijuana dispensaries. Do you support legalization, and if so, who should be allowed to sell the product?
Pennsylvania has a robust medical marijuana program that I support. This program provides patients with the ability to use marijuana to relieve health-related pain, PTSD, and debilitating health conditions. While there may be some tax-related benefits to adult recreational use, we cannot ensure that the health and safety of all Pennsylvanians won’t be compromised. Additionally, the current questions surrounding the sale of recreational marijuana and the potential for state stores to control the distribution is disqualifying and will further increase the size of government.
Arguments over voting provisions — such as mail-in balloting, “drop boxes” and voter verification requirements — have become a part of the electoral landscape. How well do you think our election systems work now, and what if any changes to our state voting laws would you support?
The right to vote should not be taken lightly and neither should the security of our elections. Strengthening voter ID requirements, an issue widely supported by voters across the Commonwealth, provides an additional level of security that promotes confidence in the electoral process. Another secure, common-sense voter service that was recently added in our county are ballot return sites. These sites were staffed with county personnel and provided the opportunity for mail-in voters to know their ballot was handled directly by county workers. Any time we can allow more people to legally and securely vote is a win for democracy.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe in 2022, there have been discussions in state capitals across the country about whether to limit abortion access or expand it. What changes, if any, would you favor to the state's current abortion laws?
Pennsylvania’s current law allows legal abortions for any reason up to six months of pregnancy. We should encourage a culture of life but must also be willing to support compromise legislation that can be generally accepted by most Pennsylvanians and does not allow for extreme positions such as a ban on abortions, criminalizing women who have abortions, taxpayer-funded abortions, or late-term abortions. Society would benefit from fewer abortions, not more. Pennsylvania should help make abortion a last option, not a first one, by providing supports for women facing unplanned or unsupported pregnancies.
