Democracy Has Prevailed.

June 15, 2009

Rep. Wagner Gives Birth: 1st sitting PA legislator in almost 25 years to give birth

Congratulations, Chelsa and Khari!

The details:
State Rep. Wagner Gives Birth to Thaddeus Wagner Mosley

First sitting legislator in almost 25 years to give birth


State Representative Chelsa Wagner and her husband Khari Mosley are proud to announce the birth of their son Thaddeus Wagner Mosley on June 14th at 9:11 p.m. Mother and child are both doing well. Rep. Wagner is only the third sitting State Representative to give birth and the first in more 20 years, along with the first Democrat.

The baby weighed 9 lbs 15 oz at birth and was delivered by Midwives at Magee. This is the first child for the couple.

“They are tired but overjoyed,” said Rep. Wagner’s chief of staff Heidi Tappe. “Right now they are getting to know their new addition and settling into their expanding family!”

Before the birth Rep Wagner said that she was excited to take on the challenge of being a working mother, like so many women across her district and the State of Pennsylvania. “I’m lucky to have a great support network, especially my husband Khari who will be traveling with me to Harrisburg after the birth. Along with being an exciting and joyful time for us personally, I think this will also help me understand the challenges faced by so many women who work and raise a family.” Rep. Wagner expects to leave for Harrisburg for the anticipated lengthy budgetary process to address the Commonwealth’s climbing deficit shortly after she and Thaddeus are cleared to travel.

According to the PA House Archives the previous legislators to give birth were Lois Sherman Hagarty, who gave birth to one of her sons (Seth Michael, 7/2/85) during her tenure (R – Montgomery County, 1980-1992), and Frances Weston, who gave birth to two daughters (Bridget Rose, 4/20/83 and Kaitlyn, 7/16/86) during her tenure (R – Philadelphia County, 1981-1990).

Khari Mosley, Rep. Wagner’s husband, is the National Political/Field Director for the League of Young Voters.

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7 comments:

Sherry Pasquarello said...

i think it is so wonderful!

Ol' Froth said...

I had no idea that Wagner and Mosley were a couple! Congrats you two!

Unknown said...

Congratulations on the baby, condolences on the loss of a promising political career.

Gloria said...

Just a viewer,

Does your post refer to Chelsa or Khari losing a promising political career?

Does having a baby mean the end of a political career? I think quite a few male politicians, past & present, had large families, yet managed to forge ahead politically.

I'll agree that women tended to hold back til the kids were raised before throwing their hats in the political ring, but times have changed.

Unknown said...

I'm being totally pragmatic here. Ms. Wagner's husband is African-American, and that's not going to play with the very active older voters in her district. I'm not judging, I'm just saying.

fester said...

Chelsa and Khari being together had been one of the worst kept political secrets in the city for a while now. It had no impact on her re-election campaign as the combination of her last name and her good work has served her well in the eyes of her constituents.

I would argue the other way in that the Wagner-Mosley marriage is a massive political asset for her career as it gives her an almost unique hook to re-create the Obama coalition within the city limits for the 2013 mayoral primary if she so chooses to go that route.

Unknown said...

Fester, it may have been known to insiders or people who follow politics closely. That isn't the electorate. "Insiders" and political junkies recognize that Luke is a fool, but he gets elected handily. Bill Peduto was smart enough to embrace that reality and save himself a lot of money and trouble. "The people" are not the ones who read here or know all the ins and outs of the local political scene.

There is no way it's a "massive political asset" since a lot of black people look down on interracial marriage as much as whites do. Watch and see what happens.