Current Position: U.S. Representative (since January 2009)
Credit: Dahlkemper House Web site
Why She Matters
Dahlkemper brought no political experience to her longshot 2008 challenge to then-Rep. Phil English (R-Pa.). She told voters she was a "concerned citizen, not a career politician," but her moderate positions and a Democratic wave helped her defeat the seven-term incumbent in Pennsylvania's 3rd district.
A career dietitian and small-business owner, Dahlkemper had run a landscaping business and been active in several civic groups, including the Girl Scouts of America.
She began the 2008 House race as a considerable underdog, but she beat the national Democrats' preferred candidate in a party primary. With English looking vulnerable, Democratic leaders threw their weight behind Dahlkemper and made the race a top priority. Dahlkemper campaigned on improving the fading economy and bringing troops home from Iraq; she staked out conservative social views, backing gun ownership and opposing abortion rights.
Dahlkemper joined the Blue Dog Democrats and was assigned to the House Agriculture, Science and Technology, and Small Business committees. She voted for the $787 billion economic stimulus package in February 2009, but she opposed the cap-and-trade climate bill in June 2009, citing potential negative effects on the local economy.
At a Glance
Current Position: U.S. Representative (since January 2009)
Career History: director, Lake Erie Arboretum (1998-2008); co-owner, Dahlkemper Landscaping (1997-2008)
Birthday: December 10, 1957
Hometown: Erie, Pa.
Alma Mater: Edinboro University, B.S. 1982
Spouse: Dan
Religion: Catholic
Committees: Agriculture; Science and Technology; Small Business
DC Office: 516 Cannon House Office Building, 202-225-5406
District Office: Erie, 814-456-2038
Email
Web site
Path to Power
Born in 1957, Dahlkemper grew up in Erie, Pa. She graduated from Edinboro University in 1982 and became a dietitian in Houston. She returned to her hometown in 1986 to start her own consulting company, beginning a career as a small- business owner that would help her in her first political campaign more than 20 years later.
In 1997, Dahlkemper joined her second husband, Dan, in running the family landscaping business. In addition to raising five children, she also worked with civic groups and for a decade ran the Lake Erie Arboretum, a local tree museum.
Run for U.S. House
Dahlkemper said she decided to challenge seven-term incumbent Rep. English in late 2007 because of the Iraq war, which she labeled a "mistake.". She also cited the declining local economy, telling voters that as a mother of five children in their 20s, she wanted western Pennsylvania to be a place where young adults wanted to stay and raise their families.
She began the race as a distinct underdog. Though the Dahlkemper name was known for its long business ties in the district, Democratic leaders preferred another candidate, and Dahlkemper lagged in fundraising. But Dahlkemper's experience as a small businesswoman and her story of raising her children for a time without health care resonated with voters. She won 45 percent of the vote and defeated three other Democrats in the party primary, winning the right to face English in the general election.
Running as a centrist Democrat with socially conservative views on abortion and gun rights, Dahlkemper focused on economic, health care and energy issues. She tied English to the unpopular President George W. Bush and cast the incumbent as a friend of big oil companies. She also emphasized her business background. "I've made a payroll. I've followed a budget and I've actually created jobs in this district, unlike Phil English," Dahlkemper said.
National Democratic leaders became increasingly impressed with her chances for victory, and Dehlkemper earned visits from Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Rahm Emanuel and Bill Clinton as the election drew near. She won a close race with 51% of the vote, though polls before Election Day had shown her with a larger lead.
The Issues
Dahlkemper campaigned with an emphasis on the political center, mixing a critique of the Republican Congress and the Bush administration with conservative stances on social issues.
She joined the Blue Dog Democrats after arriving in Congress. In her first year in the House, Dahlkemper voted with fellow Democrats 94 percent of the time. Her most notable break with the party came in June 2009, when she opposed against cap-and-trade energy legislation.
Dahlkemper describes herself as a "whole life" politician, referring to her opposition both to abortion rights and the death penalty. She stressed her support for Second Amendment gun rights. Dahlkemper also campaigned against free-trade agreements that she said had pushed Pennsylvania jobs overseas; she excoriated English for his support of the Central American Free Trade Agreement, saying his vote was key to its 2005 passage.
On foreign policy, Dahlkemper voiced support for the war in Afghanistan while saying she opposed the Iraq war from the start. She called for an "organized disengagement" from Iraq in which the U.S. would withdraw its forces while keeping its commitment to help Iraq rebuild its civil society.
Health-Care Reform
As a freshman Democrat and a Blue Dog, Dahlkemper was an active contributor to the party's 2009 health-care efforts in the House. A supporter of the public option, she has also pushed for the inclusion of measures to incentivize preventive care and health living. In July 2009, Dahlkemper joined with other Blue Dogs in writing a letter to the House Democratic leadership voicing concerns about the cost of the emerging health-care legislation. The letter also cited worries about the impact of a proposed employer mandate on small businesses, although the lawmakers did not signal an outright opposition to the requirement.
In October 2009, Dahlkemper won the support of Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to include in the final House health bill her measure to allow young adults to be covered by their parents' health insurance through the age of 26. As late as October, Dahlkemper would not officially commit to voting for the bill, though her appearance with Pelosi and other Democratic leaders suggested her support was likely.
The Economy
As with many House races, the rapidly-deteriorating economy figured prominently in Dahlkemper's race against English. The incumbent's vote against both versions of the broadly unpopular $700 billion Wall Street bailout package did not stave off criticism from Dahlkemper, who suggested the financial rescue was a necessary evil but blamed Republican deregulation efforts for causing the crisis in the first place.
After taking office in 2009, Dahlkemper voted in favor of the $787 billion economic stimulus package, but she said she worried that it fell short. She cited economists who recommended a stimulus of $1.2 trillion, and she lamented that more money was not directed to infrastructure spending. Still, Dahlkemper voiced hope that the measure would prevent the unemployment rate from reaching double-digits.
Energy
Dahlkemper made energy independence a key issue in her House race. She criticized rising gas prices under the George W. Bush administration and called for increased investments in both traditional and alternative-energy sources.
Once in the House, she faced what she called a "particularly difficult" vote on the Democratic cap-and-trade bill in June 2009. Dahlkemper ultimately voted against the measure, saying that while she was concerned about the effects of climate change, the bill would place a "disproportionate burden" on northwestern Pennsylvania, leading to higher costs for residents.
The Network
Dahlkemper arrived in Washington with a relatively limited political network, not surprising given her lack of political experience before her upset congressional win. Instead, she turned to her neighborhood to fill her new House office. Most of the staffers Dahlkemper hired came from her network back home; they included friends, neighbors, high-school classmates and campaign volunteers.
The freshman congresswoman also appears to be forging strong ties with the Democratic leadership. She drew praise from Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in October 2009 when the speaker appeared with Dahlkemper at a press conference to announce that a bill Dahlkemper authored would be included in the final House health-care legislation.
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