This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at PS Behrend chapter.

Midterms can be confusing, I get it! That is why I am here to give you the rundown on who is on the ballot. Before I break down all of the candidates, let’s talk about what the midterms are and how they work!

If you have no clue what midterms are (seriously? What rock are you living under?), they are general elections held in the middle of the president’s term.

This Tuesday people across the country will be voting to fill all 435 seats of the House of Representatives and 34 of the 100 seats of the Senate.

Don’t worry, there won’t be 600 names to choose from on the ballot. We elect senators by state, we are electing one for Pennsylvania this term. We vote for our Representatives by district (we are in district 16). During this election, we will also be voting for the Governor and Lieutenant Governor.

Without further ado, here is a break down of each candidate to help you be as informed as possible!

Candidates for U.S. Senate

Bob Casey (D)
- He is a current member of the U.S. Senate.
- Some of his campaign themes are:
  - Fighting for American Workers
  - Standing up for small businesses
  - Protecting and strengthing healthcare.
  - Ensuring America’s place in the global economy.
- Learn more about Bob and his priorities here
Lou Barletta (R)
- Current member of the U.S. House of Representatives
- Some of his campaign themes are:
  - Leading the fight against illegal immigration
  - Saving taxpayer money
  - Finding solutions to the opioid crisis
  - Standing up for life.
- Learn more about Lou here
Dale Kerns (L)
- Some of his campaign themes:
  - Abortions should be left to the state, Roe v. Wade should be overturned, and planned parenthood should be defunded.
  - Legal immigration should be easier. Our current immigration system needs to be reformed to help our economy.
  - Expansion of trade across nations.
  - Parents have the right to attach their tax dollars to their children so they can send them to any school in any district that they find best.
- Find out more about Dale here
Neal Gale (G)
- Some of his major campaign themes are:
  - Declare a state of emergency on the Senate floor regarding Climate change.
  - Decriminalizing cannabis and sex work nationally.
  - Disarmament of nuclear weapons worldwide.
  - Re-regulating banks, insurance, and real estate industries.
- Find out more about Neal here

Candidates for U.S. House

Mike Kelly (R)
- Current Republican representative for the 16th congressional district.
- Some of his major themes:
  - Protecting Social Security and Medicare for seniors
  - Reducing health care cost for all Americans
  - A new energy policy that encourages the development and responsible usage of all forms of American energy.
  - Providing more funding to the military forces to endure we can protect our country.
- Find out more about Mike here
Ron DiNicola (D)
- Some of his major themes:
  - Making higher education affordable
  - Reducing the role of special interest money in Politics
  - Protecting the rights of workers to organize and join a union.
  - Tackling the opioid epidemic in Pennsylvania and across the nation.
- Find out more about Ron here
Ebert “Bill” Beeman (L)
- Some of his major campaign themes:
  - Eliminate the federal income tax
  - Downsize the NSA, the TSA, and end mass surveillance
  - Localize education
  - Downsize the military
- Learn more about Bill here

Candidates for Governor

Tom Wolf (D)
- The current governor of PA
- Some of his major campaign themes
  - Enhancing the quality of care for seniors in long-term living facilities
  - Supporting solar energy
  - Investing in Pre-K and Kindergarten
  - Strengthening Animal Cruelty Laws
- Find out more about Tom here
Scott Wagner (R)
- Some of his major campaign themes:
  - Eliminate the school taxes on Pennsylvanians’ home, and break Pennsylvania’s 45-year streak of tax increases on everything from personal income and sales, to gas and digital downloads
  - Retool and reinvent the education system to prepare children to fill STEM jobs and the 200,000 available skilled labor positions
  - Reduce the size of the legislature
  - Abolish pensions and lifetime insurance plans
- Find out more about Scott here
Ken Krawchuk (L)
- Some of his major campaign themes:
  - Veto all tax increases
  - Pardon all non-violent drug offendors
  - Defend the right to keep and bear arms
  - Support all varieties of marriage
- Find out more about Ken here
Paul Glover (G)
- Some of his major campaign themes:
  - Reduce the demand for fossil fuels and end fracking
  - Fully employ all Pennsylvanians to rebuild cities, suburbs, and farms
  - Allow a nonprofit base for statewide universal health coverage
  - Shift budget from prisons to jobs and schools, and from roadbuilding to transit
- Find out more about Paul here

Candidates for Lieutenant Governor

John Fetterman (D)
- Some of his major campaign themes:
  - Promote criminal justice reform and fight back against mass incarceration
  - Fighting for a livable wage ($15 an hour)
  - Common sense gun control
  - Protecting a woman’s right to choose
- Find out more about John here
Jeff Bartos (R)
Kathleen Smith, Libertarian Candidate. You can find more information including biographies, key issues, and legislatures proposed at, https://www.facebook.com/kathy4ltgov/
Jocelyn Bowser- Bostick, Green Candidate. You can find more information including biographies, key issues, and legislatures proposed at, https://www.gpofpa.org/jocolyn_bowser_bostick_2018

To check out your individual district head over to Ballotpedia’s sample ballot and type in your address and they will give you all that you will be voting on!

Election Day: Your Guide Through The 2018 Midterms

We wanna slide into your DMs