Kevin Dellicker relies on grassroots campaign to win 7th District GOP nomination
Faces Lisa Scheller in May 17 congressional primary
Kevin Dellicker, a Republican seeking his party’s nomination from the 7th Congressional District, admits he’s not a politician.
“I’m just an ordinary guy who wants to help his country get back on track,” he said last year when he announced his candidacy.
In the May 17 primary, he will face Lisa Scheller, a former Lehigh County commissioner who lost the 2020 congressional election to Democratic U.S. Rep. Susan Wild. Wild is seeking re-election to a third term and is unopposed for her party’s nomination.
The district includes Lehigh, Northampton and Carbon counties and, in Monroe County, Eldred and Polk townships and about half of Ross Township. The district leans Republican now that Carbon has been added and most of Monroe County eliminated under the newly drawn map, according to FiveThirtyEight, which analyzes political data.
Background
Dellicker, 51, a resident of Heidelberg Township, is a 26-year veteran who served a total of four tours in Afghanistan and Iraq in the years after 9/11 as an intelligence officer with the National Guard.
In 2020, he and his wife, Susan, wrote a self-published book about their experiences – his deployments away from home and her staying home with their children – titled “Twenty-Percent Soldiers: Our Secret Life in the National Guard.”
Since 2005, he has run a technology company, Dellicker Strategies, which assists businesses and organizations, including school districts in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, with their broadband internet access and cybersecurity.
Dellicker also has experience in the public sector, having worked in the administration of Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge as an economics policy adviser from 1998-2002 and with the New York State Senate Majority Counsel Office providing support for economic and environmental policies from 1994-97.
In the community, he has served on the Lehigh County Workforce Investment Board and the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce Public Policy Committee. He has coached youth soccer, baseball and wrestling teams. He is a member of the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the National Rifle Association.
Dellicker graduated from Northwestern Lehigh High School, where his three sons also have attended. He has college degrees from Penn State University (environmental science and history), Syracuse University (master’s in public administration), and Liberty University (master of divinity in global studies)...
Issues
His positions on key issues, as outlined on his campaign website, include:
Supporting coverage of pre-existing conditions, “market-based reforms” to control health care costs, greater access to mental health and addiction treatments, protection of health care benefits for the elderly, and reforms in Medicaid and Medicare to ensure their effectiveness; opposing Medicare for All.
Working “to protect and defend all unborn children” as well as promoting policies to help pregnant women and support fathers.
Defending the Second Amendment to preserve the right of Americans to own guns and be able to defend themselves.
Ensuring solvency of Social Security.
Advocating for improved health care for veterans and enhanced family support systems.
Supporting lower taxes for small businesses.
Standing up to China, which is the “most dangerous foreign threat to our nation.”
Securing U.S. borders with stricter controls on immigration.
Enhancing voter identification requirements and verifying absentee ballot signatures.
Adopting a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution and reducing 0excessive government spending.
Condemning Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. “The United States and its allies must respond with strong countermeasures that degrade Russia’s ability to conduct ongoing military operations and punish the Russian government for its deadly decision.”
Abortion: Believes life begins at conception, supports federal law making it a crime to perform an abortion if a heartbeat is detectible unless the mother’s life is at risk, supports a human life amendment to the U.S. Constitution, supports a ban on RU 486,a pill used to end pregnancies up to 10 weeks, would not allow abortions if a mother’s health is at stake but her life isn’t in danger, would allow abortion in case of rape if that is the only way to end Roe v. Wade.
The campaign
In his quest for the 7th District GOP nomination, Dellicker must overcome two of Scheller’s advantages: She is an experienced campaigner known to voters and has much more money to spend,
As of March 31, Dellicker’s campaign showed $32,450 in contributions and $23,466 in expenses. Scheller of Allentown had $1,244,908 in cash on hand, after raising $414,302 in the first three months of 2022, according to her April quarterly report filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Meanwhile, incumbent Democrat Susan Wild ended March with $2,353,061 in cash, up from $1,705,3321 at the beginning of the year.
Dellicker doesn’t consider that funding disparity a disadvantage.
“Money is important but it’s not the main factor to determine electability,” he said. “If it was, we would have Michael Bloomberg as president. And all you need to do is look at the state Senate race in New Jersey to know that an authentic, hardworking candidate can beat a well-funded, professional politician.”
He added, “I never expected we could outraise Lisa Scheller, but with the right message and our many volunteers we could win.”
This concludes our series of the 7th District congressional candidates. Follow the links to read the stories about Republican candidate Lisa Scheller and Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Susan Wild.