Cook moves Scott Perry’s House race to toss-up

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report shifted Rep. Scott Perry’s (R-Pa.) race toward Democrats on Friday, calling the contest a toss-up.

Perry is in a competitive race with Democrat Janelle Stelson in a battle Cook previously had rated as “lean Republican.”

“While the political environment should still favor Perry, his unique vulnerabilities, coupled with Democrats’ spending advantage, moves this race from Lean Republican to Toss Up,” Cook’s Erin Covey wrote.

Perry has been a subject of interest in the Justice Department’s probe looking into former President Trump and his allies’ efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Stelson has hit Perry on that issue, and has also made abortion rights a central message of her campaign in a district that has become more and more purple.

Stelson raised $1.3 million during the second quarter and ended the period with more than $1.1 million cash on hand. Perry raised $625,000 during the same period and ended the quarter with $790,000 in the bank. 

The Democrat is well-known in the district. She was a registered Republican until early last year, and worked as a news anchor at WGAL. The anchor-turned-politician has said she decided to challenge Perry after she read the news of Roe v. Wade being overturned by the Supreme Court in 2022.

Former President Trump, who won Perry’s district by 4 percentage points in 2020, is on track to win it again, Covey wrote, but Perry appears to be trailing behind the former president.

The Hill/Decision Desk HQ’s average of polls shows shows Perry leading Stelson, 51 percent to 49 percent.