Sestak beat Specter in primary; now the big race begins

In yesterday's primary election, Democrats here in Pennsylvania chose Congressman Joe Sestak over incumbent Arlen Specter to run against Republican Pat Toomey in the race for U.S. Senate.

For a while, I had wondered if Specter might have a better chance of beating Toomey in November. I thought that Specter, as a moderate and a bit of a maverick himself, might appeal more to independents and moderates of both parties than the more progressive Sestak. But, when I got to my polling place, I ended up voting based on conscience rather than strategy. And my conscience would not let me vote for Specter, a longtime Republican who switched parties last year for strategic reasons, and who had voted for some of George W. Bush's most egregious policies.

So now we have the fairly progressive Sestak running against the very conservative Pat Toomey in this important race. It's like a local microcosm in the current political climate that has become so polarized nationwide.

It's going to be an interesting race.