Former Scottdale Council candidate challenges Davanzo in 58th state House race

After losing a seat on Scottdale Council by a marble last year, Cherri Rogers is challenging four-year incumbent state Rep. Eric Davanzo on Nov. 5.

Rogers, 56, of Scottdale, comes to the political arena with more than 30 years of experience as a nurse, including four years as a school nurse in the Pittsburgh Public Schools system. She tied an 18-year incumbent in the Scottdale council election last year, leaving her chances of securing the seat up to fate.

Her opponent, Andy Pinskey, drew the winning marble in the tiebreaker at the Westmoreland County Courthouse.

Rogers earned a spot on the Democratic ballot to run against Davanzo in the 58th District. The district includes Adamsburg, East Huntingdon, parts of Hempfield, Jeannette, Madison, Monessen, Mt. Pleasant, North Belle Vernon, Penn borough, Rostraver, Sewickley Township, Smithton, South Huntingdon, Sutersville and West Newton.

Davanzo of Smithton worked 15 years in building trades and a decade as a carpenter superintendent before running for the state House in a 2020 special election, securing the victory on St. Patrick’s Day. He was reelected in 2022.

“I’m always trying to give back to the communities, and I just thought that I could make a difference,” said Davanzo, 48. “I want to leave things better than I found them.”

Davanzo said his biggest accomplishments in office are advocating against extensive lockdowns during the covid pandemic and helping pass legislation that eased the teacher accreditation process for schools such as the Central Westmoreland Career and Technology Center.

The legislation accepts volunteer hours — instead of just paid hours — to become an instructor, he said.

Davanzo said if reelected, he will focus on American manufacturing and working with the district’s laborers.

“That’s where I came from,” he said. “Some of these building trades, they built this country. I’m always happy to support them.”

Rogers said labor unions are among her top priorities.

“(Workers) need to be able to look at a company and negotiate fair wages, make sure that their pensions are fair. It’s just something that people might look at now as outdated, but it’s really not,” she said. “It’s really important to keep strong labor unions to help our industry be strong, help with economy growth in neighborhoods.”

Given her backgrounds in health and education, Rogers supports the pro-choice movement and tackling the school voucher system.

“I talk to my teachers, I talk to those large teachers unions,” she said, “and I’ve learned how the voucher system isn’t really helping people of low socioeconomic status — that it’s only helping the rich people send their kids to private schools for free.”

Rogers would also work to put a stop to pollution flowing into Sewickley Creek from a South Huntingdon landfill operator, she said.

Residents of South Huntingdon’s Yukon neighborhood have raised concerns for more than 40 years about the MAX Environmental Technologies landfill that stores and treats industrial and hazardous wastes.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found violations in its March 2023 inspection of the landfill’s facilities — including metals and other pollution flowing into the creek from a pipe and stormwater runoff.

“I’m appalled that they’re not getting any support from the state,” she said.

Davanzo said he will support “pretty much any other common sense legislation.”

“We’ve got this huge pocket of natural gas. I’d like to see us tap into that energy,” he said. “I’d like to see us do some stuff with maybe inflation, agriculture. There’s so many things that we can go on about that need done in this commonwealth.”