Describing his motivation in 2010 to challenge Arlen Specter, Sestak said “I could not abide that he was not going to answer for thirty years of bad voting record or his humiliation of Anita Hill.” These criticisms can also apply to current frontrunner Joe Biden, who voted for the Iraq War and regrets his treatment of Anita Hill while he chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee. Although from Delaware, Biden is happy to promote his Scranton roots, and his campaign is based in Philadelphia. On top of his vocal support for both Specter and McGinty, this gives Sestak special motivation to go up against Joe Biden.

“Sestak is known for his indefatigable campaign style, though this has not resulted in victories since his time in Congress,” concludes McElwee. “But walking across the United States, working to build name recognition and a campaign, will be much harder than traversing Pennsylvania. It's likely that Sestak's 2020 Democratic primary will be as much of a political footnote as the 1996 GOP primary run of his former opponent, Arlen Specter.”

Hunter DeRensis is a reporter at The National Interest. He Tweets @HunterDeRensis.

Image: Reuters.