Technicality forces Lindy Li withdrawal from Pennsylvania congressional primary

Congressional candidate Lindy Li ponders her future.

By Louis Chan
Reprinted from AsAm News

Just three weeks before the Pennsylvania primary, the woman largely believed to be the most viable candidate for the Democratic nomination to run in the state’s 6th Congressional District has dropped out of the race following a court defeat.

Lindy Li, 25, would have been the youngest member of Congress if elected.

“I’m truly sorry I couldn’t hold onto our dream. My heart is in pieces,” Li said to her supporters on Facebook.

Her storybook candidacy ended when her Democratic opponent won a court challenge invalidating many of the signatures she gathered to file her candidacy. 1,000 signatures are required for a Congressional candidate to appear on the ballot. She says she collected 2,500.

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“One of our notaries failed to keep a notary log that is required by law. This oversight disqualified a significant portion of our signatures, placing us below the legal requirement. I take full responsibility for what happened,” said Li.

The court challenge was filed by her opponent Mike Parrish.

That leaves Parrish as the only Democrat left in the race. Li had previously declared her candidacy in the 7th Congressional District near Philadelphia, but she would have faced two other Democratic candidates and if she had won the primary, a 3-term Republican incumbent. The Democratic leadership convinced her to move her candidacy to the 6th District where Parrish has raised only $26,445 for his campaign compared to $389,254 raised by Li in the last campaign filing.

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“This episode leaves me with no bitterness or resentment — only love. When the court adjourned, I embraced with warmth those who sought to end our campaign. While disappointed, I wish my opponent the very best and will devote my time now to supporting other candidates and serving our community.

“This campaign was a labor of love. I will run for public office again to serve our country and hope you will remain with me. Thank you so much for sharing this journey with me.”

Some of her supporters on Facebook urged her to run as a write-in candidate. In fact, some even pledged to write her name on the ballot.

Li acknowledged that as a possibility, but seemed to douse cold water on the idea.

“I could run as a write-in candidate. Just wondering if it would be better to save our resources for next time, since it would be incredibly expensive.”