PA8 Candidates Cartwright, Bresnahan Agree to Debate in October

Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright’s campaign announced Wednesday that he will debate Republican challenger Rob Bresnahan in October for the congressional nomination for Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District.

The debate, to be held at Wilkes-Barre’s King’s College Burke Auditorium on Oct. 22 or 23, will be broadcast live on WVIA-TV and WVIA Radio. WVIA is a PBS and NPR member station in northeastern Pennsylvania.

Bresnahan’s campaign has said they would like to face him more than once.

“It is disappointing that Congressman Cartwright agreed to just one debate more than a month after early voting began and just days before the election, which shows a complete lack of respect for the residents of Northeastern Pennsylvania,” Bresnahan wrote in a press release.

Bresnahan’s campaign said they had also agreed to a debate hosted by WBRE/WYOU in slow September or early October, and urged Cartwright to accept that invitation.

Both parties are going all out to grab this spot this cycle.

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) announced in June that it had reserved $1,976,000 for advertising time in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton television market, while the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has reserved $1.6 million for this market. While the DCCC and NRCC have reserved ads for other television markets in Pennsylvania, none is larger than the amount reserved for this market, including the 8th Congressional District.

Candidates are also increasing their share. Cartwright has raised more than any other congressional candidate in Pennsylvania in the past two quarters, bringing $1.68 million in the latest report and $1.38 million at the beginning of the year. Bresnahan raised $1.13 million in the latest filing, which included a $400,000 loan to his campaign, and raised just under $730,000 in the previous filingwhich also included another loan of $400,000.

Cartwright, serving his sixth term in the U.S. House of Representatives, has a cash-strapped advantage. The Lackawanna County Democrat entered July with $4.53 million at the box officewhile Bresnahan’s campaign had $1.22 million.

Cartwright is the only Democrat in the state’s congressional delegation, representing a district that former President Donald Trump won in 2016 and 2020. He won in 2022, 2.4 points over Republican Jim Bognet.

Cook Political Report AND Larry Sabato’s Crystal BallTwo different national rating agencies have rated the race for the 8th Congressional District as “uncertain.”