Dominic Pileggi, the longtime Pennsylvania Senate Republican floor leader who lost his leadership post in November, announced Friday that he is running for an open seat on the Delaware County Court.
Pileggi, a lawyer and former Chester mayor, has served 12 years in the Senate. His ouster from leadership after eight years as majority leader came amid a philosophical clash that pitted moderates against a growing group of conservative senators, some of whom had been openly critical of his leadership.
He did not mention the intraparty tensions in a statement released by his office, but rather emphasized his experience and temperament among his qualifications for the bench.
"As a senator, I take a very deliberative approach on public policy matters and would do the same as a judge, considering all sides of an issue to reach a fair result," he said.
In a May profile story on Pileggi, Philadelphia Magazine called the 57-year-old "the straight man of Pennsylvania politics" and it quoted former Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell, calling Pileggi "the most powerful person in Harrisburg." In 2011, he briefly flirted with a challenge to U.S. Sen. Bob Casey's re-election bid.
Pileggi, who is midway through his four-year Senate term, has no immediate plans to resign from the Senate, a spokesman said. His district takes in parts of the Philadelphia suburbs of Delaware and Chester counties.
In the Senate, he has championed openness in government, sponsoring a 2008 overhaul that toughened the state Right-to-Know Law. He also led efforts to abolish the Philadelphia Traffic Court following a judicial corruption scandal and enact juvenile justice reforms after the "kids for cash" scandal in Luzerne County.
