Newly elected state Rep. Aerion Abney, Glenn Grayson square off in Pittsburgh state House district

Just weeks after winning a special election to finish out former state Rep. Jake Wheatley’s term in Harrisburg, newly elected state Rep. Aerion Abney once again finds himself matched against the Rev. Glenn Grayson in a race for the seat.

Abney, 33, and Grayson, 62, are seeking the Democratic nomination in the May 17 primary to run for a four-year term starting early next year.

The pair tied in a Democratic committee vote to determine which of them would be the party’s nominee in a special election to finish out Wheatley’s term. After randomly drawing names, Abney, 33, beat out Grayson, 62. Abney’s name then appeared on the ballot in the April special election, which he won decisively to replace Wheatley, who left his position in Harrisburg to serve as Mayor Ed Gainey’s chief of staff.

There are no Republican candidates in the primary.

Abney, a social worker and community activist living in Pittsburgh’s Manchester neighborhood, said the special election win will give him an advantage in the primary, as he will be the incumbent in the race.

“We’re hoping that a lot of the folks who voted for me in April will say, ‘I’ll vote for him again,’ ” Abney said. “But we’re not taking anything for granted.”

Grayson, of the Hill District, has spoken out against the tiebreaker that gave Abney the nod as the Democratic nominee in the special election, calling it “a fluke.” He said he was pleased that several hundred voters wrote him in on their special election ballots.

“If I’m elected, I’m elected because I would be the people’s choice and not the flip of a hat or a fluke,” Grayson said.

Grayson serves as pastor of Wesley A.M.E. Zion Church in the Hill District and founded the nonprofit Center that CARES.

“What I come to the table with is a proven record of work. I’m a servant of the people,” he said. “I will continue to serve the entire community. They’ve seen my stewardship, my commitment, my activism and my heart for people.”

If elected, Grayson said he’d work to fight gentrification, provide support for seniors, bolster the city’s affordable housing stock, ensure all workers can earn a living wage and improve the commonwealth’s educational system.

But Grayson said his top priority is fighting gun violence.

“There’s no easy answer, but we do have to craft legislation that will protect cities and families and people,” Grayson said.

Grayson said he’d like to hold gun owners more accountable for their weapons. In the current system, if someone has a gun stolen because they’ve left it in their car or somewhere else where it’s not properly secured, authorities return to the gun to its owner if it’s recovered. Grayson argued that this doesn’t encourage gun owners to be more careful with their guns, and suggested a system that puts more emphasis on ensuring gun owners aren’t letting their weapons fall into the wrong hands.

“I’m not against your rights to guns, but we just have to be more accountable on every level,” he said.

Abney said eliminating gun violence is his top concern. He said it’s imperative to keep guns out of the hands of kids, and said he will advocate for increased resources for gun violence reduction programs. He said local organizations that work on gun violence prevention within their communities need to receive more funding.

“Government alone is not going to solve this problem,” he said. “I think government has a role to play, but it’s going to take a collective effort from folks all throughout the community, those who work there, those who live there, those who play there.”

Abney said other priorities of his include bolstering resources for universal pre-kindergarten programs and early childhood education, helping more people obtain jobs with a living wage and connecting first-time homebuyers with programs that offer financial assistance. He said he wants to ensure “we are doing responsible housing development within our communities so we are not ethnically cleansing our communities and so that people are able to stay in the neighborhood in which they live.”

The April special election generated only a 7.66% voter turnout. Abney encouraged more voters to cast their ballots in the primary.

“These local elections are really critical in the sense that your elected officials at a local level make decisions that impact your everyday life,” he said. “It is important that voters have the right to hire and fire their elected officials with their vote. We encourage people to exercise that right so elected officials will actually be responsive to their needs.”