One Too Many

How much mud has to fly in a political campaign to inspire an elected Democrat to publicly defend the Republican candidate? Look no further than Pennsylvania's 16th senate district, which holds a special election tomorrow to fill the vacancy left by freshman U.S. representative Charlie Dent. The district covers eastern Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, which includes Allentown.

The race between Republican Pat Browne and Democrat Jennifer Mann, both state representatives, started cordially enough but soon turned negative. When voters yawned nonetheless, Ms. Mann dropped the bomb. Two weeks ago she launched an ad featuring Mr. Browne's conviction for drunk driving. "We need lawmakers, not law breakers," says an announcer against a background of sirens and screeching tires. Mr. Browne professed shock that Miss Mann would raise his 1999 drunk-driving conviction, calling it a personal issue that doesn't affect his ability to serve. He should be thanking her she didn't tell the whole story.

Mr. Mann's DUI problems weren't his first. He was convicted in New Jersey in 1995 for the same crime, losing his license for a year. In the 1999 incident, he was sentenced to jail but ended up spending only a month in rehab, though he again lost his license. The two arrests weren't his only drive-ins with the law. He lost his license on earlier occasions for speeding and reckless driving.

Enter Lisa Boscola, a Democratic state senator. She decried the ad run by Ms. Mann, a fellow Democrat, as "offensive" and "disgusting." Ms. Boscola was herself convicted of drunk driving in 2000. State Democratic leaders were not pleased. They threatened to cut Ms. Boscola's staff and run a candidate against her unless she withdrew her comments and firmly supported Ms. Mann. She agreed and even preemptively pledged not to run a single negative ad in her next campaign (realizing, of course, that now that the ice has been broken, a challenger would likely raise her DUI conviction when she faces voters again).

Like infidelity, sexual proclivity and youthful indiscretion, this brouhaha spotlights one of politics' endearing questions: When do unsavory personal incidents disqualify a candidate from office? Mr. Browne argues that he sought treatment for alcoholism and deserves the consideration due somebody who suffered from a "disease." Ironically, the influential Allentown Morning Call overlooked all the mudslinging and editorialized that the race is a "win-win" for voters since both candidates are "qualified and competent." But any voter who remains unswayed by this endorsement at least will be able to find a ready alternative on the ballot. Running as an independent is Drake Minder, a former champion diver at Allen High School, who says he lifted most of his positions from the Green Party without reading them.