Pennsylvania Rep. Chris Deluzio’s first ad of his re-election campaign focuses on his work in response to the 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.
“Disasters like this happen when companies put their profits above the safety of our families,” the young Democrat said in the ad, which was first shared with CQ Roll Call. “That’s why I’m leading the Railroad Safety Act in Congress and working with Democrats and Republicans to hold them accountable.”
The northern part of Pennsylvania’s 17th District borders East Palestine, where a train derailed in February 2023, releasing hazardous materials into the air, soil and water of surrounding areas. That happened just a month after Deluzio was elected to the House of Representatives.
“These toxins entered our air and water in Western Pennsylvania,” Deluzio said in the complaint.
Deluzio introduced a bipartisan bill that would hold the Norfolk Southern Railroad responsible for the accident and prevent future accidents, but the bill has stalled.
Deluzio’s six-figure advertising buy on radio and cable television in the Pittsburgh area comes a day after his Republican opponent, House Representative Rob Mercuri, released his first commercial on Wednesday. Mercuri’s commercial shows his family watching a 2016 presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and introduces himself to voters as a veteran and business owner.
“It was the debates. I thought, ‘Is this what our children are going to imagine America to be?'” he said in the ad. “I never shied away from military service, not at West Point or during two tours in Iraq. I started a business and gave back to the community I grew up in. Washington can do more to reduce costs, protect our families and secure our future.”
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates the race as leaning Democratic. The National Republican Congressional Committee last month added Mercuri to its Young Guns program for promising challengers.
Deluzio leads the way in fundraising, with $1.9 million on hand as of June 30, compared to $801,000 for Mercuri.
