After Jackie Crahalla defeated John Lawless by 63 votes last week, Lawless destroyed a number of files on his constituents and disappeared from the public eye, Crahalla said.

Lawless is the Democratic representative for the 150th district of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He will represent Montgomery County until Dec. 1, when Crahalla will begin her term.

Constituents have been unable to reach Lawless since the night of his defeat, The Mercury, a Pottstown newspaper, reported Monday.

There was no answer at Lawless' hometown office yesterday. A spokeswoman at his Harrisburg office said he was unavailable for comment. The spokeswoman declined to comment about Crahalla's statements.

Lawless lost the seat with 8,639 votes to Crahalla's 8,702 votes.

"They [Lawless and his supporters] haven't contested my win yet," Crahalla said. "But he [Lawless] seems to have disappeared off the face of the planet."

Many people in the House were celebrating Lawless' defeat, Crahalla said.

"Someone walked up to me and said, 'So you are the one who slayed the dragon,' " Crahalla said. "I mean, everyone is all smiles."

Crahalla noted that Lawless still has a number of supporters in Montgomery County.

"He has some people that truly think that he represents them," Crahalla said. "I mean, it's not like I won by a whole lot. We're only talking 63 votes."

Some people, like Jonathan D. Barry (junior-mathematics), support Lawless and his ideals.

"Go anywhere in central Pennsylvania outside of this campus, and you will see that the majority are conservative and support Lawless' ideals," Barry said.

Lawless is notorious for his spirited objections to Penn State's "Sex Faire" and "Cuntfest," student-run events during the 2000-01 school year. He
tried to take nearly $10,000 in state funding away from the university following these events but was unsuccessful.

Rubina Javeri, president of the Undergraduate Student Government (USG), said Lawless caused a number of problems for student groups on campus.

Groups now face much more red tape when trying to plan events and receive funding from USG due to Lawless' actions, Javeri said.

"Because of his remarks and actions, it's a lot harder for student groups in general to plan events," she said. "I hope that this new representative is more in tune to student issues and concerns as well as those of the administration."

Crahalla said she supports Penn State.

"I believe in free speech," she said. "It might be a little tasteless at times, but I am a champion for free speech for everyone."

Crahalla was the first real competition for Lawless in five terms, she said.

"I was very fortunate," Crahalla said. "I didn't receive any money from Harrisburg because no one thought I would win. I did this all on my own. Now I don't owe anything to anyone."

Although she said Lawless destroyed a number of files on his constituents, Crahalla said she is looking forward to her term in the House.

"Oh well, what can you do?" she said. "This might make things harder, but I am still looking forward to it."