ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The race for Allentown mayor could go the distance.
Two-term Councilman Ed Zucal is looking to earn the Democratic Party’s nomination over incumbent Mayor Matt Tuerk in the May 20 primary.
But Zucal could end up on the ballot in November even if he fails with his bid this month, as he’s actively seeking Republican write-in votes.
Zucal in the final weeks of his primary challenge is sending out mailers criticizing the mayor.
One calls Tuerk “woke” and displays a quote from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt describing the mayor as “Trump-deranged.”
That mailer urges Republicans to “Restore Honor to Allentown/Write In Ed Zucal For Allentown Mayor.”
He needs just 100 valid write-in votes from Republicans to win the party’s nomination for Allentown mayor, according to Pennsylvania election regulations.
No Republican candidate is seeking the party's nomination for the general election for the mayor seat.
'Right out of the MAGA playbook'
The mailers come as Tuerk continues to question Zucal’s Democratic bona fides online and off ahead of the party’s May 20 primary.
“The people in the audience heard from somebody who's running in a Democratic primary, but sounds more and more like a MAGA Republican every time he opens his mouth."Matt Tuerk on April 29 about Ed Zucal
Zucal repeatedly has tried to discredit Tuerk’s assertion that crime is down in Allentown, one of the main planks of the mayor’s re-election campaign platform.
“It’s election season, which means you’ll see a lot of false claims from candidates,” Tuerk said May 5 on Facebook.
“It’s right out of the MAGA [Make America Great Again] playbook to say that positive numbers on reducing crime are made up. Unfortunately that’s exactly my opponent’s approach.”
The mayor felt similarly after a candidates forum at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church.
“The people in the audience heard from somebody who's running in a Democratic primary but sounds more and more like a MAGA Republican every time he opens his mouth,” the mayor told LehighValleyNews.com on April 29.
“To me, it's a letter. It's not about who I represent; it's a letter."Ed Zucal on party affiliations
“I'm looking at somebody who's wearing a ‘Republicans for Ed Zucal’ T-shirt standing up there, and I haven't seen any ‘Democrats for Ed Zucal’ T-shirts yet."
After posing for a picture with the woman wearing that shirt, Zucal told LehighValleyNews.com he “would not have a problem running on either side” of the ballot in November.
“As I state very clearly, [I’d be] a mayor for all the people,” he said.
Democratic York City Mayor Michael Helfrich unseated two-term Mayor Kim Bracey in the 2017 general election; he lost the Democratic primary that year but earned enough write-in votes from Republicans to keep his campaign alive.
Zucal said running as a Republican wouldn’t bother him.
“To me, it's a letter. It's not about who I represent; it's a letter,” he said of party affiliations.
'You have to represent everybody'
During Lehigh Valley Public Media’s Allentown mayoral debate April 17, candidates were allowed to ask each other two questions.
Tuerk first asked which of his “woke” policies Zucal would eliminate if elected mayor, but Zucal did not provide any specifics.
The mayor used his second opportunity to repeat the question, which again got no straight answer.
Zucal this week told LehighValleyNews.com he is not targeting any of Tuerk’s policies, but said he would end policies that he said “separate groups of people.”
Those include initiatives that protect or support people in particular demographics, he said.
But last month, Zucal supported two bills that do just that.
“I stand by this: You have to represent everybody — no matter what color, what religion, what nationality they come from — if you're going to be a good, effective mayor."Ed Zucal
Allentown City Council on April 16 unanimously passed measures that “protect and grant refuge to members of the LGBTQ+ community” and establish an African-American Advisory Council to serve the mayor and council.
And in January, he helped pass a bill creating a Latino Advisory Council.
“Where’s the white committee? Where’s the Asian committee, the Arabic committee?” Zucal said.
“I stand by this: You have to represent everybody — no matter what color, what religion, what nationality they come from — if you're going to be a good, effective mayor."
Zucal hit back at Tuerk’s claims that he’s not a true Democrat.
“I’ve been a Democrat as long as he’s been alive,” Zucal said after some quick math.
Zucal, soon to be 68, said he registered as a Democrat as soon as he was old enough to vote; Tuerk turned 50 this month.
The councilman called himself "very conservative," noting one of his major responsibilities as councilman is to “watch the funds to make sure they're not misappropriated or spent foolishly.”
“Sometimes, people take that as being a Republican,” he said.
The councilman said he’s faced little pushback about his Democratic colors as he speaks to voters.
