Here’s what Centre County PA House candidates had to say about election results
Incumbents representing Centre County in the Pennsylvania House will keep their seats — and a lifelong Centre County resident will take office in a newly created district — after Tuesday’s election.
Republican Kerry Benninghoff won reelection to the 171st House District, Democrat Scott Conklin won reelection to the 77th House District and Democrat Paul Takac won election to an open seat in the new 82nd House District.
The Centre Daily Times stopped by election night parties on Tuesday night and spoke with candidates throughout the night. Here’s a look at what they had to say.
‘This is where I grew up’
Republican Kerry Benninghoff won reelection to his 13th term against Democrat Robert Zeigler, 15,166 to 6,850 votes, as of noon Wednesday.
Benninghoff said he was honored to be reelected and that he doesn’t take it for granted. He credited his staff for their hard work and “great constituent service.”
“It’s just an honor to get reelected and serve our community for another two years. This is where I grew up, it’s where we raised our children and it’s kind of a way for me to give back,” Benninghoff said in a phone interview early Wednesday morning, noting that because he’s from Centre County, he’s had a good pulse on the community’s needs.
When asked about his priorities going into his next term, Benninghoff said the acute thing facing many Pennsylvanians and others across the nation is the “high cost of everything.” He predicted that fuel prices would continue to rise and said the country needs to develop its own energy sources. He is in favor of doing so by using “natural given commodities right under our feet” in Pennsylvania.
That, in conjunction with getting people fully back to work and ensuring the education system is preparing students for future jobs and workforce demands, were also high on his list of priorities.
He said he gives credit to anyone who runs for office, including his opponent, Zeigler.
“It’s … easy to criticize from afar, but to step in the arena is a whole different obligation. I give anyone credit who steps up to run for office,” Benninghoff said.
Wishing well and hoping for change
When reached for comment early Wednesday morning, Zeigler wished Benninghoff well.
“I wish him well and hope he works for the peoples’ interests and not corporate PAC interests. I also hope he pays attention to the needs of all of the municipalities he represents,” Zeigler wrote in a text message.
Earlier on election night at his party at Cafe 210 in downtown State College, Zeigler said he felt good about the learning experience and understanding the needs of the district, which includes parts of Centre and Mifflin counties.
“One thing that’s really disheartening is that Mifflin County is really neglected so you know, regardless of who’s in there, they better pay attention,” Zeigler said. “I know regardless, I’ll take care of my local community and everything, but there’s no real strong advocate for some of these communities and they need that.”
Throughout his campaign, he often talked about having conversations with Republicans, and even garnering some support and votes from them, even though they’re in different political parties. He said the message that brought them to his campaign was, “I don’t lie.”
The Millheim Borough councilman said regardless of who is in office, they need to make sure they visit the smaller communities in the district.
“One of the reasons I ran is the fact that smaller, rural municipalities in particular get neglected by Harrisburg people and we need more working class people in Harrisburg, as well. I’m not going to ever say I’m the perfect candidate … but the thing is, the small municipalities don’t have people visit them. I went to Newton Hamilton borough and no one had been there unless they either wanted the borough for something or the borough begged them to be there. ... That’s sad. So I would hope if Kerry’s in office that he actually cares enough to send at least his staff there to check all these guys regularly, or himself.”
‘Humbled and honored’
Another incumbent that easily won another term was Democrat Scott Conklin, who won his ninth reelection bid to the 77th District. He defeated Republican Steve Yetkso, 14,641 to 8,977 votes as of noon Wednesday.
Conklin said he was “humbled and honored” by the results.
“I look forward to continuing my service for the people of the 77th district and Centre County,” he said in a text message via a spokesperson Wednesday.
Yetsko did not respond to a request for comment. As of Wednesday afternoon, he had not made a Facebook post since Election Day.
Democrat Paul Takac declared victory in Pennsylvania’s 82nd House District, an open seat in a newly created district.
The Associated Press called the race in Takac’s on Wednesday, with Takac ahead of his Republican opponent, Justin Behrens, 12,588 to 9,836 votes.
This story was originally published November 9, 2022 at 3:13 PM.
