County commissioner to seek GOP nod for Dent’s US House seat

HARRISBURG, Pa. – Another Republican will pursue the eastern Pennsylvania congressional seat being vacated by centrist Republican U.S. Rep. Charles Dent, while one Republican is dropping out.

Dauphin County Commissioner Mike Pries said Thursday that he’ll seek the party’s nomination in the May 15 primary election, while state Rep. Justin Simmons dropped out.

Dent isn’t running again after holding the 15th District seat since 2005.

Other Republicans running are ex-CIA officer Scott Uehlinger, state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie and Marty Nothstein, a Lehigh County commissioner who won Olympic gold as a cyclist at the 2000 Sydney Games.

Several Democrats are running.

Republicans dramatically redrew the district boundaries in 2011 to make it more Republican friendly, breaking decades of precedent to stretch its boundaries almost 90 miles into conservative central Pennsylvania.

Registered Democrats still outnumber Republicans in the district.