Democrat challenging Pennsylvania progressive launches ad focusing on crime

A Democratic candidate challenging Congresswoman Summer Lee (D-Pa.) in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District has launched her first ad, focusing on crime.

Laurie MacDonald, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Center for Victims, is hitting the airwaves for the first time with an ad released Wednesday.

In the ad, reviewed by The Hill, MacDonald portrays herself as a “law-and-order Democrat” and vows to bring that approach to Congress if elected.

“Hello, I’m Laurie MacDonald,” she says in the ad. “I’m running for Congress against Summer Lee because you deserve better. I’m a law-and-order Democrat. I’m CEO of the Center for Victims, where I fight for victims’ rights, not criminals’ rights. If you’re sick and tired of all the divisive rhetoric and the ‘us versus them’ mentality, I’m with you. Let’s make this change together.”

The ad is set to run for two weeks, beginning Wednesday, and it will air on CNN and MSNBC, as well as the Pittsburgh market. 

MacDonald declared her candidacy in early January. Along with Lee, who is currently serving her first term in the lower chamber, she will be competing with Edgewood Borough Councilwoman Bhavini Patel in the Democratic primary.

“It’s time for leaders in Congress to bring us together rather than sow division and distrust,” MacDonald said in a statement provided to The Hill. “I will be a unifying voice in Congress who will work across the political aisle to bring real solutions. I am proud to be the first candidate in this race on TV and we plan to significantly increase our efforts in the coming weeks to show voters that there is an accomplished alternative to the polarizing incumbent.”

Lee, who became the state’s first Black congresswoman upon winning her race in 2022, has received backing from top House Democratic leaders for her 2024 reelection bid. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), Whip Katherine Clark (Mass.) and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (Calif.) endorsed Lee in mid-January. More recently, the Allegheny County Democratic Committee endorsed her.

The Hill has reached out to Lee’s campaign for comment.