A March 17 special election will determine the new representative for Pennsylvania’s 193rd House District following Torren Ecker’s appointment to the Court of Common Pleas. Voters in southern Cumberland County and northern Adams County will choose between Republican Catherine Wallen and Democratic nominee Todd Crawley.
Crawley, a longtime environmental health and safety professional and former higher education administrator, said his campaign is focused on addressing rising costs for residents while protecting local communities and improving education funding.
The 193rd district includes parts of Cumberland and Adams Counties. Adams County residents who live in Abbottstown Borough, Arendtsville Borough, Bendersville Borough, Berwick Township, Biglerville Borough, Butler Township, East Berlin Borough, Hamilton Township, Huntington Township, Latimore Township, Menallen Township, New Oxford Borough, Oxford Township, Reading Township, Tyrone Township, and York Springs Boroughs are encouraged to vote in this swing election.
Crawley for the 193rd brings 30 years in environmental health and safety and the last 20 years working in higher education,” Crawley said in a published video. “I would like to take that higher education knowledge that I have and apply that to our educational system.”
Crawley identified property taxes as a top concern for district residents, calling them “a high, high, high strain on many of our constituents,” and said he wants to reform funding structures to ease the burden on homeowners while strengthening public education.
He also called for greater transparency and fairness in cyber charter school funding, arguing that payments for online students should better reflect actual costs. “We need greater transparency,” Crawley said, adding that funding for students learning at home should not be treated the same as funding for students educated in school buildings with staffing and utility expenses.
Environmental and land-use issues are another central focus of the campaign. Drawing on his professional background, Crawley said he has been meeting with residents and local officials about proposed data center developments across the region.
“I had a town hall the other day about data centers… we met with the community and came up with a game plan,” he said. “If I was elected, I would push for a moratorium actually for a year on data centers until we could get the ordinances and the zoning up to speed so we don’t get trampled by big business coming in.”
Crawley also highlighted support for restoring Pennsylvania’s traditional hunting schedule. “Which is very important to my constituents — let’s put deer season back to Monday,” he said.
Turnout will be a key factor in the special election which historically draw fewer voters.
Key election deadlines include voter registration by March 2, mail-in ballot applications by March 10, and Election Day voting on March 17.