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Plum's Dintini vies to flip Brewster's Pa. Senate seat to GOP

One of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s key state Senate districts that will be up for grabs in November has garnered a Republican challenger.

Small-business owner Jen Dintini, of Plum, announced her candidacy in the 45th district, which covers Allegheny County’s Mon Valley, as well as eastern and southern suburbs such as Plum, Monroeville, Brentwood, Baldwin, and Castle Shannon.

Incumbent state Sen. Jim Brewster, D-McKeesport, will retire at the end of the year. The district is a key target for Republicans, who hope to flip the seat in efforts to retain their Senate majority. In 2020, Brewster carried the district by just 69 votes out of 132,000 cast, though the district became a bit more friendly to Democrats in 2022 redistricting.

Dintini, 42, runs a security guard business, Am-Gard Inc., and another company, 3G Security Solutions. She said she has traveled throughout the district for work. Dintini touted her background as a business leader as being valuable in Harrisburg.

“From Plum to Elizabeth, McKeesport to Baldwin, I’ve met great people who are looking for a fresh start for our region,” Dintini said. “We have sent the same kind of legislators to Harrisburg for decades and keep getting the same results. It’s time for a fresh perspective to get things done.”

She graduated from high school in Plum and attended the University of Pittsburgh. Her top campaign priorities are job creation, public safety, education, and mental health.

Dintini lauded labor unions’ place in the workforce and said her businesses employmany union members. She said it’s important to understand the opportunities in the region for training in good paying, union jobs.

The district already has at least one Democratic candidate: state Rep. Nick Pisciottano, D-West Mifflin, who announced his run for the Senate seat earlier this month.