Mark Critz

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Mark Critz
Image of Mark Critz
Prior offices
U.S. House Pennsylvania District 12
Successor: Keith Rothfus
Predecessor: John P. Murtha

Education

Bachelor's

Indiana University of Pennsylvania, 1987

Contact

Mark Critz (b. January 5, 1962) was a member of the U.S House representing Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District from 2011-2013. Critz was first elected in 2010, and ran unsuccessfully for re-election in 2012, losing narrowly to challenger Keith Rothfus, a Republican, in the general election on November 6, 2012.[1]

In the 2012 primary, Critz defeated Jason Altmire for the Democratic nomination in a race rated by Politico as one of the year's five ugliest member vs. member battles.[2]

Critz ran for the office of Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania in 2014 but lost in the primary.[3]

Biography

Critz is a native of Irwin, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1987 and then worked as an aide to the late Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) for more than ten years - first as Director of Economic Development, then as District director. After Murtha's death, Critz ran for, and won the seat in a special election in May 2010. He was elected later that year for a full two-year term.[4]

Career

  • 1987: Graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, Pa.
  • 1998-2010: Aide to United States Representative John Patrick Murtha, Jr.
  • 2010-2013: U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2011-2012

  • Armed Services
    • Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
    • Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces

Issues

Specific votes

Fiscal Cliff

Yea3.png Critz voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 172 Democrats who voted in favor of the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257 - 167 vote on January 1, 2013.[5]

Healthcare

Though he was not yet in Congress when the health care reform bill passed, Critz has stated that he would have voted against it.[6]

Jobs

Critz made job creation and fixing the economy top priorities. He advocated improving schools and job training, providing tax credits to small businesses, ending tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas, and cutting taxes for the middle class.[7]

Energy

Critz supported the coal industry, and a national energy strategy that included domestic drilling. Critz also opposed Cap and Trade, though he did support investing in alternative energy.[8]

2012 Election

See also: Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District elections, 2012

Ballot challenge

Because of redistricting, Critz faced fellow incumbent Rep. Jason Altmire (D) in the April 24, 2012, Democratic primary. The race was one of the most competitive primary races of this cycle. Critz initially challenged Altmire's right to be on the primary ballot. Candidates are required to file 1,000 valid signatures for their petitions. Altmire filed only 1,651 signatures, while candidates usually file at least twice the required amount. The Critz team argued that one of Altmire's junior staffers lives outside the district where she collected signatures, thus violating Pennsylvania law.[9]

On March 5, however, a Pennsylvania judge ruled against Critz, allowing Altmire to stay on the ballot. After the ruling, Altmire accused Critz of lowering himself to the tactics of a "prom king."[10]

Endorsements

  • National Rifle Association[11]
  • Former President Bill Clinton[12]
"Honesty"
  • Rep. Robert Brady (D-PA)
  • Pennsylvania AFL- CIO[13]
  • American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)[14]
  • The Beaver-Lawrence Central Labor Council[15]
  • Allegheny County Labor Council
  • Greater Westmoreland County Labor Council
  • International Association of Fire Fighters
  • Service Employees International Union
  • United Steelworkers
  • United Transportation Union

Ads

On March 22, 2012, it was reported that the Critz campaign had purchased a significant media buy of about $500,000 in the Pittsburgh market and $100,000 in the Johnstown market. Critz was expected to run ads until the primary election, including some negative spots against Altmire.[16]

In March, Critz released his first ad, titled "Fight for Them."
Critz highlights his jobs record and criticizes Altmire's support for a Balanced Budget Amendment in "Could Be"[17]


On March 30, the Critz campaign released "Not True" in response to a misleading ad from the Atlmire campaign claiming Critz hadn't voted against the Tea Party budget.[18]

Ad controversy

Some House Democrats expressed frustration with an Altmire ad that attacked Critz for failing to "stand up to the Tea Party" on the conservative budget proposal. Some lawmakers viewed the ad as a distortion because in reality, Critz voted "present" with party leaders, instead of "no." House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and Reps. Robert Brady (D-PA) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) all publicly defended Critz against the ad. “Manipulating those issues is a disservice to our party and certainly inaccurate about Mark,” said Schakowsky.

In defending the ad, Altmire told The Hill newspaper, “It’s 100 percent accurate. My ad says he did not vote against the Tea Party budget, and he didn’t. ...No. It’s not technically correct. It’s 100 percent correct. My ad says he didn’t vote against the Tea Party budget. He didn’t. Thank you, good talking to you." Before, Critz had said that he would endorse Altmire if he won the primary. Now, that may change. "It’s this Medicare ad,” said Critz. “I’m very frustrated by that, because it’s very misleading. And for him to pick that issue and turn it into a negative ad upsets me because it really undermines what we’re trying to do as a party to protect Medicare. It angers me.”[19]

Polls

2012 General Election

Mark Critz vs. Keith Rothfus
Poll Mark Critz (D) Keith Rothfus (R)UndecidedMargin of errorSample size
Democratic Poll
(September 23-25, 2012)
52%41%7%+/-4.9400
McLaughlin & Associates Poll
(September 19-20, 2012)
38%38%24%+/-4.9400
Benson Strategy Group Poll
(July 9-11, 2012)
44%38%18%+/-4.9400
PoliticsPA
(June 13-15, 2012)
46%36%18%+/-4.9402
AVERAGES 45% 38.25% 16.75% +/-4.9 400.5
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2012 Democratic Primary Polls

Jason Altmire vs. Mark Critz
Poll Jason Altmire (D) Mark Critz (D)Margin of errorSample size
[1]
(January 10-15, 2012)
50%43%+/-4.4503
[2]
(February 2-5, 2012)
47%37%+/-4.9400
[3]
(March 12-14, 2012)
55%31%+/-4.9400
[4]
(March 22-25, 2012)
45%38%+/-4.9400
[5]
(April 13-15, 2012)
43%39%+/-4.9400
AVERAGES 48% 37.6% +/-4.8 420.6
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Elections

2014

See also: Pennsylvania Lieutenant Gubernatorial election, 2014

Critz announced on August 15, 2013, that he would run for office as Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania in 2014. He failed to win the Democratic nomination in the primary on May 20, 2014.[3]

Before entering the race for lt. governor, Critz had seriously considered a bid to re-claim the U.S. House seat which he narrowly lost to Keith Rothfus in the 2012 elections.[20]

Results

Critz lost to Mike Stack in the primary.

Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, Democratic Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngMike Stack 46.8% 351,627
Mark Critz 15.9% 119,334
Mark Smith 14.6% 109,519
Brad Koplinski 11.9% 89,524
Brandon Neuman 10.8% 81,438
Total Votes 751,442
Election results via Pennsylvania Department of State.

Endorsements

  • United Steelworkers[21]
  • Johnstown Building & Construction Trades Council[22]

Race background

On February 26, 2013, PoliticsPA and The Hill previewed three 2014 House races in Pennsylvania which showed competitive promise because of a number of predictive factors, such as open seats, high stakes primary challenges and/or vulnerability to partisan switch. Pennsylvania's 12th is a traditionally Democratic district; however, recent years have seen its borders redrawn and it has become more Republican. In 2012, fallout from 2010 redistricting dovetailed with a strong turnout for GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, paved the way for Republican challenger Keith Rothfus to oust Democratic incumbent Rep. Mark Critz in the general election.

Fresh off his successful challenge, Rothfus (R) was expected to face Critz in a re-match in 2014. Critz lost by a margin of four percentage points, while President Barack Obama lost the district vote by a much wider margin of 17 percentage points. Thus many Democrats, viewing Critz as a casualty of sharing the ticket with Obama in 2012, were optimistic about their party's chances for re-claiming the seat with Critz on board.[23] Critz announced on August 15, 2013, that he would run for Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania in 2014 instead.[3]


2012

See also: Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District elections, 2012

Critz ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House to represent Pennsylvania's 12th District. He defeated Jason Altmire in the April 24 Democratic primary and lost to Republican Keith Rothfus in the November 6 general election.[24]

Politico rated the 12th District race between Critz and Jason Altmire one of the five ugliest member vs. member battles.[25]

The Washington Post listed the House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania in 2012 as one of the 10 states that could determine whether Democrats would retake the House or Republicans would hold their majority in 2013.[26] Ohio tied with Pennsylvania for 9th on the list.[26] Critz was considered one the vulnerable incumbents.[27]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 12 General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Mark Critz Incumbent 48.3% 163,589
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngKeith Rothfus 51.7% 175,352
Total Votes 338,941
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

[28]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 12 Democratic Primary, 2012
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngMark Critz Incumbent 51.2% 32,384
Jason Altmire Incumbent 48.8% 30,895
Total Votes 63,279


2010

On November 2, 2010, Critz won re-election to the United States House of Representatives. He defeated Tim Burns in the general election.[29]

U.S. House of Representatives, Pennsylvania Congressional District 12 Election, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngMark Critz Incumbent 50.8% 94,056
     Republican Tim Burns 49.2% 91,170
Total Votes 185,226

2010 Special Election

On May 18, 2010, Critz won election to the United States House of Representatives. He defeated Tim Burns and Demo Agoris in the general election.[30]

U.S. House of Representatives, Pennsylvania Congressional District 12 Special Election, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngMark Critz Incumbent 52.6% 70,915
     Republican Tim Burns 45.1% 60,740
     Libertarian Demo Agoris 2.3% 3,158
Total Votes 134,813

Campaign finance summary


Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.


Mark Critz campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2014Pennsylvania Lt. GovernorLost $255,846 N/A**
2012U.S. House District PA 012Lost $2,600,190 N/A**
2010U.S. House District PA 012Won $2,374,365 N/A**
Grand total$5,230,401 N/A**
Sources: OpenSecretsFederal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Analysis

Political positions

Voting Record

A February 2012 analysis by National Journal found that out of the 435 members of the House of Representatives, Critz ranks number 169 in liberal rankings. The ranking means that out of the 192 Democrats in the House, Critz is the 169th most liberal member.[31]

Bill sponsorship

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Critz was a "centrist Democratic follower."[32]

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Critz paid his congressional staff a total of $917,219 in 2011. Overall, Pennsylvania ranked 34th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.[33]

Staff bonuses

According to an analysis by CNN, Critz was one of nearly 25 percent of House members who gave their staff bonuses in 2012. Critz's staff was given an apparent $25,166.52 in bonus money.[34]

Net worth

See also: Changes in Net Worth of U.S. Senators and Representatives (Personal Gain Index) and Net worth of United States Senators and Representatives

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Critz's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $235,017 to $750,000. That averages to $429,508.50 which was lower than the average net worth of Democratic representatives in 2010 of $4,465,875.[35]

National Journal vote rankings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

2012

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year. Click the link above for the full ratings of all members of Congress.In 2012, Critz ranked 166th among Democratic Representatives in the liberal rankings in 2011.[36][37]

2011

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year. Click the link above for the full ratings of all members of Congress.In 2011, Critz ranked 169th among Democratic members of the U.S. House in the liberal rankings in 2011.[38]

Voting with party

Mark Critz voted with the Democratic Party 73.8 percent of the time, which ranked 177 among the 192 House Democratic members as of December 2011.[39]

Personal

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Mark Critz is married to Nancy. They have 2 children.

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Mark + Critz + Pennsylvania + Lieutenant + Governor"

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. Politico, "2012 House Race Results," accessed November 6, 2012
  2. Politico, "Congress 2012: The 5 ugliest member vs. member battles" accessed April 18, 2012
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 The Sentinel, "ex-Rep. Mark Critz seeking Dem nod for lieutenant governor," August 15, 2013 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "ltgov14" defined multiple times with different content
  4. Official campaign website, "About Mark" accessed March 22, 2012
  5. U.S. House, "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff," accessed January 4, 2013
  6. Politico, "Dem Critz holds Murtha's Pa. seat" accessed April 7, 2012
  7. Campaign website, "Creating Jobs" accessed April 7, 2012
  8. Campaign website, "Protecting and Creating Western Pennsylvania Energy Jobs" accessed April 7, 2012
  9. Roll Call, "Pennsylvania: Court Hearing Friday on Mark Critz’s Ballot Challenge" accessed March 22, 2012
  10. Politico, "Jason Altmire wins, calls Mark Critz tactics like ‘prom king’" accessed March 22, 2012
  11. PoliticsPA, "NRA Backs Critz," October 8, 2012
  12. PoliticsPA "Breaking: Clinton Backs Critz" accessed April 12, 2012
  13. Keystone Politics, "AFL-CIO Joins Chorus Attacking Altmire’s Attack Ad" accessed March 29, 2012
  14. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Early Returns" accessed March 22, 2012
  15. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Early Returns" accessed March 22, 2012
  16. PoliticsPA "Critz Goes All In" accessed March 22, 2012
  17. PoliticsPA "Critz TV Ad Goes Negative a Teensy Bit (With Video)" accessed March 28, 2012
  18. PoliticsPA "New Critz Ad Hits Back Against Altmire" accessed April 3, 2012
  19. The Hill, "Altmire ads unfair, say Dem colleagues" accessed April 20, 2012
  20. The Hill, "Source: Former Rep. Mark Critz wants to run again," February 26, 2013
  21. Keystone Politics, "Steelworkers Endorse Mark Critz for Lieutenant Governor," October 3, 2013
  22. Politics PA, "Critz Endorsed by Building & Construction Council," December 9, 2013
  23. The Hill, "Source: Former Rep. Mark Critz wants to run again," February 26, 2013
  24. Pennsylvania Department of State, "2012 General Primary Unofficial Returns," April 24, 2012
  25. Politico, "Congress 2012: The 5 ugliest member vs. member battles" accessed April 18, 2012
  26. 26.0 26.1 Washington Post, "The 10 states that will determine control of the House in 2012," accessed April 25, 2012
  27. New York Times"House Race Ratings" accessed October 3
  28. Pennsylvania Secretary of State 2012 Official Primary Results
  29. U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
  30. North Carolina Secretary of State, "Official Returns" accessed March 22, 2012
  31. National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House" accessed February 24, 2012
  32. GovTrack, "Critz" accessed May 23, 2012
  33. LegiStorm, "Mark Critz," accessed September 24, 2012
  34. CNN Politics, "Congressional bonuses in a time of cuts," accessed March 8, 2013
  35. OpenSecrets, "Mark Critz (D-Pa), 2010," accessed September 24, 2012
  36. National Journal, "TABLE: House Liberal Scores by Issue Area," February 21, 2013
  37. National Journal, "TABLE: House Conservative Scores by Issue Area," February 21, 2013
  38. National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," accessed February 23, 2012
  39. OpenCongress, "Voting With Party," accessed July 2014
Political offices
Preceded by
John Murtha
U.S. House of Representatives - Pennsylvania District 12
2010–2013
Succeeded by
Keith Rothfus (R)


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