Joint Action Committee
for Political Affairs

Voting Record:

Rep. Allyson Schwartz Democrat of Pennsylvania, District 13

Statistics

Party: Democrat
Born: 10/3/48
Education: Simmons College, B.A., Bryn Mawr College, M.S.W.
Occupation: Philadelphia Health Services Department Assistant Director (1972-1975), Elizabeth Blackwell Center Executive Director (1975-1988), Philadelphia Department of Human Services Deputy Commissioner (1988-1990), Philadelphia State Senate (1990-1992), U.S. House of Representatives (1992-Present)
Family: Married, Dr. David Schwartz
Religion: Jewish
Political Career: Philadelphia State Senate (1990-1992), U.S. House of Representatives (1992-Present)
Committees: Committee on Ways and Means, House Budget Committee

Why Your Support

In the House, Congresswoman Schwartz is well regarded for her moderate perspective on the budget and deficit, serving on the House Budget Committee. She is also considered an expert within the party on matters related to health care and was instrumental in the recent health care reform debate. Besides being a leader on health policy and budgetary matters, Congresswoman Schwartz regularly advocates for the issues JAC champions, pressing for women’s reproductive health rights in the context of larger health care debates and approaching the US-Israel relationship in the context of budgetary negotiations. Congresswoman Schwartz has earned a 100% rating from NARAL based on consistent votes to expand access to contraceptives for low-income women, expand educational initiatives, and limit the restrictions on reproductive health services.

Congresswoman Schwartz is a strong advocate for the U.S.-Israel relationship and appreciates the bipartisan support the issue enjoys in Congress. “For decades, support for Israel in Congress has been bi-partisan.  In fact, it is one of the few issues where Republicans and Democrats have consistently agreed.  Leaders of both parties recognize the importance of a strong and steadfast U.S.-Israel relationship and work together to strengthen it.”  Recognizing the many enemies that seek Israel’s destruction, Congresswoman Schwartz has consistently voted in favor of Israel’s right to self-defense, foreign assistance in the foreign operations appropriations bill, and joint ventures to provide increased security to both countries.

Background

In 2012, Allyson Schwartz will be running for her fifth term as Representative for Pennsylvania’s 13^th Congressional District. She won her fourth term in 2010 by a margin of 56%; however, in Pennsylvania, where party alliances shift from election to election, her 2012 race could pose a more serious challenge. While President Obama carried Pennsylvania in 2008, since that election, Pennsylvania politics have shifted towards the right. In 2010 Representative Joe Sestak, who won the Democratic primary over incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter who switched parties to avoid a GOP primary challenge from the right, lost to Specter’s Republican nemesis, Pat Toomey. A Republican also won the Governor’s race in Pennsylvania.

About The Candidate

Allyson Schwartz’s mother, an immigrant to the United States, left Vienna in 1938 after Germany annexed Austria. Once she arrived, she settled at a Jewish foster home in Philadelphia before meeting Schwartz’s father, a Korean War Veteran, and raising four children together. Schwartz views her mother’s narrative as representing those who sought a place of refuge from the Holocaust. While Schwartz’s mother was able to find that refuge in the United States, for many, Israel was and continues to be the safe haven for Jews everywhere.

Before running for public office, Schwartz worked as the assistant director of the Philadelphia Health Services Department and then as the executive director of the Elizabeth Blackwell Center, a Planned Parenthood Clinic. After over a decade with the Center, Schwartz was appointed the Deputy Commissioner of the Philadelphia Department of Human Services. Congressional Quarterly regards her as “one of the Democrats’ leading health care experts” and Politico has labeled the congresswoman a “rising star.” As the sole female member of the Pennsylvania Congressional Delegation, Congresswoman Schwartz is often praised as a trailblazer for women in the political arena.