Republicans dominate elections

Ridge elected Pa. governor and Jamie Phares Throughout his campaign, he'd been called "the man that nobody ever heard of." Now, he's called governor. Congressman Tom Ridge (R-Erie) managed to accomplish what so many other Republicans did yesterday -- taking over an office held by a Democrat. Ridge defeated Democratic candidate and Lieutenant Governor Mark Singel by a margin of only three percentage points, and will replace current Governor Robert Casey. Ridge's victory -- along with Rick Santorum's win in the U.S. Senate and John Fox's win in the U.S. House of Representatives -- helped convert Pennsylvania into one of the most Republican states in the nation. Ridge, who was the first person in the state to declare his candidacy for governor, was all smiles last night in Erie as he called his win a "wonderful victory." And his local supporters were all smiles at the United Republican Club in Kensington. Party members said after the election that they are sure Ridge will take care of the working class. "As governor, Tom Ridge will create a sense of returning Pennsylvania to Pennsylvanians," said campaign volunteer and Fairmount resident Danny Carr. "[He will] work hand-in-hand with the Senate and the House of Representatives to insure that simple and basic legislation will be understood by the average voter and taxpayer." At the Republican Club, Ridge supporters -- surrounded by clouds of thick smoke and the scents of beer and hot dogs -- created an environment more characteristic of Super Bowl Sunday than Election Day. Eagerly awaiting each new election update, they gathered around multiple television screens and cheered for all of the nation's winning Republicans. "Pennsylvania is going to change tonight," said Republican State Committee Member George Reutter, citing Ridge's and Santorum's victories and the return of "Republican ideals" to the state as key factors of that change. Carr, sporting a red, white and blue elephant tie and countless Ridge buttons, said the key to the Republicans' gaining control nationally and locally was independent voters. "The crucial turning point was the independent voters who two years ago gave [President] Clinton the election and now helped the Republicans," he said. "The surge of the Republicans?is due to Bill Clinton's failure to lead a country, domestically and internationally." But other supporters credited the Generation X vote with the Republican victories. "Many were excited to see young people who generally aren't Republican at the polls," said Villanova junior Brendon Powers. "This stems from a tremendous apathy on the part of young people on the whole towards politicians and thus has turned into a ground-swell of young Republicans who want a change." Ridge, a graduate of Harvard University and Dickinson School of Law, served six terms in Congress before running for governor. He said last night in his acceptance speech that after a "tough, long campaign" he can now "see Pennsylvania's future." "For two years, I've traveled this state with a message of hope saying again and again that there is nothing wrong with Pennsylvania that Pennsylvanians can't fix," he said. When the Republican Club finally emptied out at around midnight, area Republicans seemed more than satisfied that "the man that nobody ever heard of" had finally established an identity. "There's nothing like winning an election," said 20-year-old Ridge supporter Frank Valentino. "You just feel good."

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