Penn alum reflects on bid for state legislature seat as competitive primary race continues

After nearly three months on the campaign trail, 2025 College graduate Leo Solga told The Daily Pennsylvanian he’s feeling confident about his bid for Pennsylvania State Representative — despite an uphill battle in a crowded primary race.

Solga launched his campaign for Pennsylvania’s 148th House District in December, running against three Democratic opponents — including 2011 College graduate Jason Landau Goodman. The Montgomery County Democratic Committee has not endorsed a candidate in the race, so Solga will enter an open primary in May.

On Feb. 18, the Montgomery County Democratic Committee held its endorsement convention, where no candidate reached the 60% threshold to earn an endorsement. According to local reporting, Goodman and Whitemarsh Township Supervisor Megan Griffin-Shelley had been the two frontrunners for the endorsement, but neither reached the required number of votes.

The result of the convention will be an open primary, an outcome Solga advocated for.

“Fundamentally, I think the open primary was the best option for the sake of democracy, but also for the Democratic Party, and for the people of the community at large,” Solga told the DP. “I’m delighted by the outcome.”

He added that “if you want people to vote at all, you have to present them with a real option on the ballot, and you have to deliver what people think democracy is.” 

Solga said the party would “punish you” for remaining in the race against an endorsed candidate.

“If there was an endorsed candidate, the other candidates would have faced possible sanctions for staying in the race,” he said.

Solga seeks to replace retiring Pennsylvania Rep. Mary Jo Daley (D-148), whom he previously interned for. Daley graduated from Penn with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1987 and from Penn’s Fels Institute of Government with a master’s degree in government administration in 2011.

Daley endorsed Griffin-Shelley in the race after previously telling the DP that she did not plan to endorse a candidate. She did not reply to a request for comment.

Despite the competition within the race, Solga said he was “feeling very good” and was “excited” for the road to the primary, which will be held on May 19.

“We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t like the numbers, and we like the numbers,” he said.

He called the campaign a “real on the ground movement,” adding that his team’s “budget goes to literature, software, and food.”

Solga’s campaign staff is largely made up of young individuals. College junior and UA Speaker Aidan Carroll serves as the campaign manager, while seniors at Saint Joseph’s University serve as the campaign’s communications and finance directors.

“We’re not being funded by big interest groups, PACs, or big donors,” Carroll told the DP. “We wanted this to be decided by the people, and we knew that an open primary would be the best way to do that.”

Solga pointed to his age as a key way of distinguishing himself from other candidates within the race.

“Across the political spectrum, voters recognize that we need new voices at the table,” Solga said. “It really comes down to representation at a certain level. There is not a single Democrat within a decade of my age in Harrisburg.”

Solga currently serves as a researcher for the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, specializing in Pennsylvania’s magisterial court judges. He highlighted that his campaign will soon begin canvassing neighborhoods to gather the signatures required to secure a spot on the May 19 primary ballot. He also plans to host a series of “meet the candidate” events.

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