In Pa., Santorum wins seat, but Hart loses bid for post

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Pennsylvania's congressional delegation batted .500 Wednesday in two races for key Republican leadership posts in the House and Senate.
Sen. Rick Santorum easily recaptured his title as chair of the Senate Republican Conference, ranking him No. 3 in the Senate GOP leadership, by a unanimous vote. But Rep. Melissa Hart, a freshman legislator from Pittsburgh, was defeated in her bid to become vice chair of the House GOP Conference.
Hart's challenge to five-term Rep. Jack Kingston of Georgia was widely considered a gutsy move in a system dominated by seniority. She said she would not rule out running for a leadership post two years from now.
"I offer something that I still think will be helpful -- I represent a district that is very heavily Democratic and I've been able to communicate the Republican message successfully, and win," Hart said after the 159-56 vote Wednesday evening. "And more and more, we have members who are coming in from swing districts, and we need to have that ability."
The conference vice chair is the fifth-ranked leadership post in the GOP House conference.