BRITTANY BLOAM WANTS TO REMAKE US—NOT REPRESENT US.JAMES JULIUS WILL PUT DISTRICT 45 FIRST.

BOTTOM LINE

The familiar party label does not establish continuity. District 45's three prior Democratic officeholders brought substantial local-government experience and left extensive pro-life records, while Bloam's experience and broader agenda move in a different direction.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

Pennsylvania House records list Democratic officeholders in District 45 continuously from 1969 through 2026. WESA says the district skews somewhat more conservative than other House districts in the area.

WESA describes Anita Kulik as the Allegheny County House delegation's most conservative Democrat, while PublicSource reports that she won her last two elections by 16 and 26 points and significantly outran other Democrats on those ballots.

The three representatives before Bloam's nomination all entered the House after substantial municipal service: Trello after nine years on Coraopolis Council; Kotik after McKees Rocks Council, legislative-aide work, and management of Robinson Township; Kulik after 13 years as a Kennedy Township commissioner and service as Kotik's aide.

Fred Trello said on the House floor that the right to life begins at conception. His record includes six affirmative House actions on direct right-to-life or abortion legislation—HB 71, HB 1436, SB 742, SB 439, HB 668, and SB 369—plus direct abortion-restriction co-sponsorships including HB 1361, HB 1979, and HB 1908.

Nick Kotik publicly described himself as pro-life. His six distinct direct abortion-policy episodes include abortion-facility safety standards, an ultrasound bill, abortion-clinic regulation, the enacted ACA-exchange coverage restriction, hospital admitting privileges, and co-sponsorship of a 20-week and dismemberment-abortion bill.

Kulik told WESA she held a firm pro-life position, did not expect to change it, and believed many people in her district agreed.

Kulik cast eight final House votes involving abortion or closely related fetal-remains policy: SB 3 in 2017; HB 2050 in 2018; HB 321, HB 1890, and SB 857 in 2019; HB 1500 and HB 118 in 2021; and a 2025 vote against HB 1957's proposed constitutional protection for reproductive liberty. She also co-sponsored HB 2050, HB 321, HB 1890, and HB 1500.

Kulik also broke with House Democrats on firearms in 2025: she was one of only three Democratic representatives to vote against HB 1593's universal-background-check policy.

On transit funding, Kulik voted to redirect existing sales-tax revenue. Bloam supported a different package containing a new 6% ride-hail tax, a rental-car fee increase from $2 to $6.50, and a lease charge increase from 3% to 5%.

Kulik's public energy record spans natural gas, clean hydrogen, carbon capture, nuclear power, and renewables. Bloam's accessible public energy agenda is renewables-centered and offers no comparably detailed plan for Pennsylvania natural gas or its workers.

Bloam accepted backing conditioned on protecting and expanding legal abortion and dismantling barriers.

Bloam's abortion position reverses more than five decades of pro-life Democratic representation. Her tax, school-policy, and firearms positions, plus Vote Mama's published endorsement requirements, show that the break is broader.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. District 45 officeholder archive
2. WESA District 45 voter guide
3. WESA on Kulik's conservative reputation
4. PublicSource District 45 profile
5. Trello House Archives biography
6. Kotik House Archives biography
7. Official Kulik biography
8. Trello: HB 71
9. Trello: July 12, 1977 House Journal
10. Trello: HB 1436
11. Trello: November 18, 1980 House Journal
12. Trello: SB 742
13. Trello: December 9, 1981 House Journal
14. Trello: SB 439
15. Trello: June 7, 1982 House Journal
16. Trello: HB 668
17. Trello: March 16, 1988 House Journal
18. Trello: SB 369
19. Trello: October 24, 1989 House Journal
20. Trello: HB 1361 co-sponsorship
21. Trello: HB 1979 co-sponsorship
22. Trello: HB 1908
23. Post-Gazette: Kotik called himself pro-life
24. Kotik: HB 1591
25. Kotik: January 31, 2006 House Journal
26. Kotik: April 24, 2006 House Journal
27. Kotik: HB 2700
28. Kotik: HB 574
29. Kotik: May 11, 2011 House Journal
30. Kotik: SB 732
31. Kotik: December 13, 2011 House Journal
32. Kotik: 2011 SB 3 committee vote
33. Kotik: HB 1977
34. Kotik: 2011 roll call
35. Kotik: enacted HB 818
36. Kotik: April 23, 2013 House Journal
37. Kotik: HB 1314 co-sponsorship
38. Kotik: HB 1948 co-sponsorship
39. Kulik: HB 1500
40. WESA: Kulik's stated pro-life position
41. WESA: Kulik's reputation and the district
42. Kulik: SB 3 vote
43. Kulik: HB 2050 vote
44. Kulik: HB 2050 sponsorship
45. Kulik: HB 321 vote
46. Kulik: HB 321 sponsorship
47. Kulik: HB 1890 vote
48. Kulik: HB 1890 sponsorship
49. Kulik: SB 857 vote
50. Kulik: SB 857 bill record
51. Kulik: HB 118 vote
52. Kulik: HB 1500 vote
53. Kulik: HB 1957 vote
54. Kulik: HB 1957 bill record
55. WESA: Kulik's 2025 HB 1957 vote
56. Kulik: HB 1593 vote
57. HB 1593 vote coverage
58. Kulik transit-funding vote
59. Bloam Transit for All answer
60. Official Transit for All package rates
61. Kulik all-of-the-above energy proposal
62. Kulik PA EDGE energy record
63. Bloam renewable-energy answer — Video 44:59–46:12
64. Bloam solar-development article — PDF pp. 1–3
65. Bloam on a slow fossil-fuel transition — Video 20:07–20:41
66. States Win requirements
67. States Win endorsement
68. Vote Mama Candidate Pledge
69. Vote Mama's official Bloam page

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

District boundaries changed over this period. The record describes the seat's representatives, not an unchanged electorate or agreement by every officeholder or voter on every issue. Some cited bills did not become law, and no historical bill is presented as an exact match for a current candidate position. Bloam did not call for banning natural gas or fossil fuels and expressly rejected an abrupt shutdown. She supported Transit for All but did not separately enumerate each rate in that package.

BOTTOM LINE

Kulik spent her life in the communities she represented, and James Julius was born and raised in the district where he is raising his family. Bloam moved into District 45 in 2021 and brings an explicitly outside perspective with no comparable elected or municipal record.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

Kulik's official biography says she was born in Carnegie. In her retirement statement, she described District 45 as the communities where she grew up, spent her life, and served.

District 45's recent representatives learned local government before Harrisburg: Fred Trello served nine years on Coraopolis Council; Nick Kotik served eight years on McKees Rocks Council, worked 13 years as Trello's aide, and managed Robinson Township; Anita Kulik served 13 years as a Kennedy Township commissioner before working as Kotik's legislative assistant.

Kulik's public biography also documents Char-West Council of Governments work, representation of domestic-violence survivors, fire-department and youth-organization fundraising, parish service, and Rotary membership.

Bloam grew up in Elk County and moved into District 45 from Squirrel Hill in 2021. She described her 2026 candidacy as offering an outside fresh perspective.

Bloam is a first-time candidate. Her law-firm biography documents genuine professional and pro-bono service, but no comparable elected or local-government record.

James Julius's campaign biography says he was born and raised in Robinson Township, built his business in the district, and is raising his family here.

A Gettysburg College publication identified Bloam as a research analyst for the Democratic Caucus of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2008—an early Harrisburg role relevant to her 2026 description of offering outside fresh perspectives.

Bloam herself credited Kulik with attending community events and knowing what was happening across the district, while describing her own candidacy as an outside fresh perspective.

The service record continued in office: Kulik announced equipment grants for four local police departments and funding for 13 fire and EMS organizations. She also prime-sponsored the bipartisan abandoned-boats measure enacted as Act 28 of 2025.

Her independent streak was measurable. Kulik supported several Western Pennsylvania energy measures opposed by most House Democrats: only 7 voting Democrats backed HB 1947, 18 backed HB 637, and 4 backed HB 2461. She separately told KDKA she opposed a shale severance tax because Western Pennsylvania needed the jobs.

That pattern matched earlier and later assessments: Kotik predicted an independent voice; WESA reported Kulik as one of the region's more conservative Democrats on abortion and firearms; and a 2023 Inquirer analysis found she crossed toward the Republican leader relatively often on divided votes.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. Anita Kulik endorsement report
2. Official Kulik biography
3. Trello House Archives biography
4. Kotik House Archives biography
5. Bloam campaign profile
6. WESA verification of Bloam's 2021 move
7. WESA District 45 voter guide
8. Bloam law-firm biography
9. 2008 House Democratic Caucus role — PDF p. 1
10. WESA retirement profile
11. Kotik succession interview
12. KDKA energy and jobs interview
13. HB 1947 bill record
14. HB 1947 House Journal
15. HB 637 bill record
16. HB 637 House Journal
17. HB 2461 bill record
18. HB 2461 House Journal
19. Kulik party-alignment analysis
20. Local police-equipment grants
21. Local fire and EMS grants
22. Enacted HB 103 / Act 28 of 2025
23. Kulik's 2026 minimum-wage vote
24. Brittany for PA pre-primary report — Friends of Anita Astorino Kulik; March 18, 2026; $1,000
25. James Julius campaign biography
26. Independent profile of James Julius

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

Bloam has lived in the broader Pittsburgh area longer than five years, and her current home is where her husband grew up; this record does not claim that she has no ties to the region or deny her community involvement. The 2008 publication establishes one early House Caucus role; it does not establish its duration, a continuous Harrisburg career, or elected service. Kulik was not uniformly conservative: she supported labor and public schools and later voted to raise the minimum wage. The energy bills had contested environmental and local-control effects, and none of the three cited 2022 measures became law. Kulik's endorsement of Bloam and her committee's reported $1,000 contribution remain disclosed on this page.

BOTTOM LINE

This is not a one-vote distinction. Kulik's stated position and repeated final House votes established a durable pro-life record; Bloam's own words and accepted endorsement conditions establish the opposite policy direction.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

Kulik described a firm pro-life position to WESA, said she did not expect to change it, and believed many people in her district agreed.

She cast eight final House votes involving abortion or closely related fetal-remains policy from 2017 through 2025: SB 3, HB 2050, HB 321, HB 1890, SB 857, HB 1500, HB 118, and a vote against HB 1957's proposed constitutional protection for reproductive liberty.

Bloam told WESA she strongly supported reproductive rights and opposed government involvement in the decision.

Bloam accepted States Win backing conditioned on protecting and expanding legal abortion and dismantling barriers.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. WESA: Kulik's stated pro-life position
2. WESA: Bloam's stated position
3. Kulik: SB 3 vote
4. Kulik: HB 2050 vote
5. Kulik: HB 2050 sponsorship
6. Kulik: HB 321 vote
7. Kulik: HB 321 sponsorship
8. Kulik: HB 1890 vote
9. Kulik: HB 1890 sponsorship
10. Kulik: SB 857 vote
11. Kulik: SB 857 bill record
12. Kulik: HB 118 vote
13. Kulik: HB 1500 vote
14. Kulik: HB 1957 vote
15. Kulik: HB 1957 bill record
16. WESA: Kulik's 2025 HB 1957 vote
17. HB 1500 bill history
18. States Win requirements
19. States Win endorsement

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

Five votes were direct abortion-policy votes. HB 118 and HB 1890 addressed fetal-remains disposition, and SB 857 was a broader telemedicine bill containing a medication restriction. Several measures did not become law; the comparison does not claim that every vote was identical in scope.

BOTTOM LINE

The two records show Kulik supporting a plan that redirected existing sales-tax revenue and Bloam supporting a different package containing a new tax and higher charges.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

Kulik voted for HB 1364, a transit plan described on the House floor as redirecting existing sales-tax revenue without raising new taxes in the immediate future.

Bloam supported Transit for All, whose official sponsors identify one new tax and two higher charges.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. June 17, 2025 House Journal
2. PublicSource candidate answer
3. Transit for All package

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

This does not prove Kulik opposed Transit for All, establish either candidate's position on every tax, or mean HB 1364 became law. Bloam did not separately enumerate each package rate.

BOTTOM LINE

Kulik's record spans natural gas, clean hydrogen, carbon capture, nuclear power, and renewables. Bloam's accessible public energy record is centered on renewables—especially solar—and offers no comparably detailed plan for Pennsylvania natural gas or the workers connected to it.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

Kulik co-circulated an official energy-choice proposal covering natural gas, solar, wind, geothermal, and 'all forms of energy.' The memo was not introduced as legislation.

Kulik voted for the enacted PA EDGE package, an omnibus law supporting Pennsylvania natural-gas manufacturing and clean-hydrogen projects with carbon-capture, employment, and capital-investment provisions.

She also voted for community-solar legislation and joined a unanimous House vote modernizing Pennsylvania's regulation of small modular nuclear reactors and microreactors.

Kulik separately opposed a shale severance tax on the grounds that Western Pennsylvania needed the jobs. She also backed three 2022 energy measures opposed by most voting House Democrats: only 7 Democrats backed HB 1947, 18 backed HB 637, and 4 backed HB 2461.

At the May 5 forum, Bloam said Pennsylvania should transition toward more renewable energy, invest in more wind and solar, reduce red tape, and streamline renewable projects while protecting local communities.

In the following answer, Bloam said the state should enforce existing corporate pollution rules and consider making them more stringent.

Her bylined 2024 solar-development article advocated enabling legislation, public funding opportunities, and streamlined permitting for solar and community-solar projects.

In a July 28 interview, Bloam added an important limit: she said the transition must be slow and thoughtful and that Pennsylvania cannot simply 'pull the plug' on fossil fuels without significant consequences.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. Kulik energy-choice proposal
2. PA EDGE / Act 108 text
3. Kulik PA EDGE vote
4. Kulik community-solar vote
5. Small modular reactor bill
6. Kulik small modular reactor vote
7. KDKA energy and jobs interview
8. HB 1947 bill record
9. HB 1947 House Journal
10. HB 637 bill record
11. HB 637 House Journal
12. HB 2461 bill record
13. HB 2461 House Journal
14. Bloam renewable-energy answer — Video 44:59–46:12
15. Bloam environmental-rules answer — Video 46:51–47:47
16. Bloam on a slow fossil-fuel transition — Video 20:07–20:41
17. Bloam's solar-development article — PDF pp. 1–3

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

Bloam did not call for banning natural gas or fossil fuels; her July 28 answer expressly rejected an abrupt shutdown. An incomplete public record does not prove opposition to natural gas, nuclear power, or other sources. Kulik's PA EDGE vote involved an omnibus law, her energy-choice memo was not introduced, and several cited bills had contested environmental or local-control effects. This is a documented contrast in public record and emphasis—not either candidate's complete energy plan.

BOTTOM LINE

Kulik publicly described District 45 as the reason she broke with progressive colleagues. Organizations working to elect Bloam call her the progressive candidate and describe the seat as important to party control.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

Kulik told WESA, ‘But that's my district. My district is different,’ while explaining why she stood apart from progressive colleagues.

States Win called Bloam the qualified progressive candidate and described District 45 as vital to the one-seat House majority.

Working Families Party says it worked hand-in-hand with Bloam's campaign for months and expected to continue through the general election.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. WESA profile of Anita Kulik
2. States Win endorsement
3. Working Families Party primary memo

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

Both women have discussed local issues, and supporting a party majority is common. This comparison does not claim Bloam has no local priorities or that an outside organization controls her.

BOTTOM LINE

On the 2025 House proposal, Kulik broke with House Democrats and voted no. Vote Mama's published endorsement rule requires every endorsed candidate to support universal background checks and an assault-weapons ban, and Vote Mama lists Bloam as endorsed.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

HB 1593 would have removed Pennsylvania's private-transfer exception for long guns, effectively requiring background checks for all firearm purchases.

The House passed it 104–99 on September 30, 2025. Kulik voted no; contemporaneous reporting identified her as one of only three House Democrats to oppose it.

In a June 2022 column about gun violence, Kulik wrote that police and first responders should be properly funded, existing laws should be enforced, and common-sense laws should be debated. She added that solutions require compromise and listening to each other.

Vote Mama says every endorsed candidate must commit to every Candidate Pledge priority. Its firearms priority calls for universal background checks and banning assault weapons.

Vote Mama officially lists Bloam as endorsed. Her campaign filing reports a $2,500 Vote Mama contribution received May 14, 2026.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. HB 1593 bill history and text
2. Official House final-passage vote
3. Contemporaneous vote coverage
4. Kulik's gun-violence column
5. Kulik's 2023 HB 714 vote
6. Vote Mama Candidate Pledge
7. Vote Mama's official Bloam page
8. Bloam post-primary campaign filing

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

Kulik's column predates HB 1593 by more than three years and is evidence of her broader firearms approach—not an explanation of this specific vote. No attributable contemporaneous statement explaining her reason for voting no was located. She voted for a different amended background-check measure, HB 714, in 2023, so this record does not call her uniformly opposed to background checks. Vote Mama's published rule, official Bloam page, and the filed contribution establish the endorsement relationship; this record does not possess Bloam's executed pledge form.

BOTTOM LINE

James Julius has a documented District 45 background and has published clear commitments on affordability, infrastructure, energy, jobs, first responders, constituent service, and innocent life.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

DOCUMENTED BACKGROUND — James Julius's campaign biography says he was born and raised in Robinson Township, built his business in the district, and is raising his family here.

DOCUMENTED BACKGROUND — WESA independently reported that he is a lifelong Southwestern Pennsylvania resident, founded an artificial-intelligence company, and organized his campaign around Build, Grow, and Protect priorities.

JAMES'S COMMITMENT — His published local agenda calls for lower household and energy costs, an all-of-the-above energy strategy, better roads and infrastructure, Western Pennsylvania jobs, and strong police, fire, and EMS services.

JAMES'S COMMITMENT — His published life position commits to defending preborn life and equal protection under Pennsylvania law.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. James Julius campaign biography
2. James Julius local agenda
3. James Julius commitment on life
4. Independent WESA profile

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

Background facts and campaign commitments are different from a legislative voting record. James Julius has not served in the General Assembly; this record presents his stated commitments as commitments, not accomplishments.

BOTTOM LINE

Kulik supported one defined State Police-to-ICE alert. Bloam expressed a broader nonparticipation position but has not answered that exact alert provision.

DOCUMENTED RECORD

Kulik voted for a measure requiring State Police to notify ICE when a firearm background check identified an unlawfully present prohibited purchaser.

Bloam opposed state funding for what she called federal immigration overreach and said state employees should not participate in federal actions that undermine trust.

ORIGINAL SOURCES

1. HB 714 text
2. May 22, 2023 House Journal
3. PublicSource candidate answer

LIMITS OF THIS RECORD

Bloam has not answered that exact alert provision. The comparison does not prove disagreement in every enforcement circumstance, open borders, abolishing ICE, or disregard of judicial warrants.