Former mayor eyes statehouse
Former Kennett Square Mayor Leon Spencer announced his bid to seek the Republican Party nomination for state representative for the 158th Legislative District. Spencer announced his bid on the steps of Kennett High School on a cold and blustery Feb. 19 morning.
Former state Rep. Eric Roe introduced Spencer, referring to him as “one of the most decent men I’ve ever met.” A man who will “recover civility and statesmanship” and bring those qualities back to Harrisburg.
And Spencer set the tone for his campaign, a tone of unity when he said, “We are running for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 158. Let us say it again. We are running for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 158.”
The emphasis was on the word “we.”
“If ever there was a time when the focus needs to be on first-person plural, we’re living it. We’re living in a time when unification is critically important. That’s why we, all of us, are running for Pennsylvania House of Representatives representing District 158,” the former mayor told the crowd of about 75 people attending. “We can do a whole lot when we do it together.”
Spencer, who is also a musician, spoke of the human need for other people. And he took that idea, coupled with that spirit of unity, and likened them to music.
“Think about this when we talk about doing things together. Think of a choir. There are sopranos; there are altos; there are tenors, and there are bases. The composition may be the same, but when you look at the music, each one of those parts has a separate music line. Think of the end result. When you put those four voice parts together, you get harmony. That’s not figurative, that’s literal,” he said.
He went on to say that people won’t always agree, that there will always be some disagreements and differing opinions, “But what we must do, we must respect those differences, and we must communicate.”
He closed his speech with a variation on his earlier mantra, “We are running for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 158. That’s first-person plural. Please indulge me to shift to first-person singular: I ask your support so that I can be the conduit between you and Harrisburg.”
After his brief speech, Spencer gave his reason for seeking the nomination: “I want the opportunity to do some things for the positive good. I have the experience. And I have the opportunity to do some things that are right for the common good,” he said.
And in keeping with his stated focus on unity, when asked to describe his basic political philosophy, he said “Purple.”
He explained that meant bringing together Democrats and Republicans, the blues and the reds, “I want to work both sides of the aisle.”
If he gets the nomination, Spencer would face =incumbent Democrat Christina Sappey in the November general election.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
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