Summary

In this episode of The Zekely Podcast, Zeke interviews Elizabeth Moro, a small business owner and civic leader running for State Representative in Pennsylvania. They discuss her motivations for running, the importance of community engagement, reproductive rights, gun control, and the power of voting. Elizabeth shares personal stories about her family and her cafe, emphasizing the need for representatives who prioritize the common good and engage with their constituents. The conversation highlights the significance of hope and resilience in politics, as well as the impact of grassroots efforts in local communities.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction Elizabeth Moro

01:53 Why State Rep?

03:39 DELCO Dialect

06:08 Protecting Reproductive Rights

07:55 Michigan Roots 

09:33 Michigan Trivia

12:16 Gun Control

14:47 The Importance of Voting

17:32 Let's Get Engaged

19:26 Saving the Farm

22:21 Centreville Place Cafe

23:54 Insurrection

26:37 Democratic Policies Supporting Small Businesses

30:21 Door Knocking

31:54 Why Are You A Democrat?

33:20 Hope

34:02 The Future

Elizabeth Moro: https://elizabethmoro.com/

Full Video Episode Available On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheZekelyPodcast

Short Clips Can Be Found On TikTok: @drzeketayler/@thezekelypodcast and Instagram: @thezekelypodcast

www.thezekelypodcast.com

Hello, I'm Zeke and welcome to The Zekely Podcast. Let's talk Pennsylvania. The guest I have today lives in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania and has been a force for civic engagement in her community. She's a small business owner, conservationist and author and is making her second run at flipping a state house seat blue in PA 160. Thank you so much for being here, Elizabeth Moro

For years, I’ve knocked thousands of doors all over Pennsylvania and poured my heart and soul into supporting candidates and causes that make a difference—from local school board races to national elections. The personal is political, and I take every election in Pennsylvania personally.

Where the mainstream media has failed you, I will give you truth and independence. You’ll hear from Democratic leaders, candidates, and change-makers who are working to improve the health of the Commonwealth, and it won’t be boring as hell.

No matter where you are, I’ll meet you with hope and a plan to make your community better one day at a time. Welcome to the Zekely Podcast. Let’s talk Pennsylvania.

I miss how you used to say my name in the beginning. My kids thought that was so great. They were like, mom, love it. Because we loved it.

I know, Elizabeth Moreau. I know, and you did not correct me for the longest time. You just let it go and let it go,

and you know, that's how wars are started, Elizabeth, okay? I'm glad that I pronounced it correctly. We have so much history together, and we've only known each other for like two years, but I feel like it's been an eternity. And I'm so...

Ha ha ha!

We do. I know. We're like

long lost friends working on the same journey together. mean, so much we share.

know. Yes,

I know and I'm very grateful you decided to come on to The Zekely Podcast. We're have a lot of fun learning even more about you and play some games. You ready?

Ready.

Well, I already know the answer to this question, but I want to ask for all my listeners and viewers, why have you decided to run to be a state rep in Pennsylvania?

the state is where I belong. It's it's where things

I've been so active in my community with neighbors for Crebilly and trying to bring people together. I know the state is where things happen. So the more we thought about it, I was like, yeah, this district needs somebody who is tried and true tested, but who also is boots on the ground. I'm a small business owner. I talk to people every single day and I love people. and so I knew this was the right time for me to run. My kids are all grown.

It's time.

People love you and this is the last seat in your district that is still held by a Republican, right? Every other level the state senator Congressperson all Democrats. This is the last holdout, correct?

It is, and I plan that when I win this district, the red's going to flip away and it's all blue. And that doesn't mean that, see, I have to be aware that I don't want to offend people in my district who are Republican because I understand where they're coming from. A lot of people in my district, they just want to take care of the people that they love.

That's right, we have to flip it blue.

Right.

⁓ They want good schools. They want smart taxes that do the things that they're supposed to do. Government is supposed to keep us safe. And right now, I think too many people feel like it's not doing its job for good

That's right.

We have access to resource. We should do the right thing and help you out.

Well, you're not going to offend anyone by what you say on here because we're actually going to talk about what the current state rep, who is a Republican, is not doing for your district and it will become very clear why you need to be the next state rep in PA 160.

All right, we're gonna play a game, okay?

It's called Delco Dialect, all right? So PA 160 has parts of Chester County and Delco. Now I did some deep diving on the internets, okay? And watched a lot of Delco accents. So I'm gonna give you some sentences and I want you to tell me your best Delco interpretation. I'm gonna tell you my best Delco interpretation. We're gonna have a Delco off, okay? All right, and I would say you don't have a very thick.

Delco accent, but some of the words that you say are Delco-ish,

grew up north of Detroit, really close to Canada. So I have a little bit, even though the majority of my life has been out here in the Brandywine area, it's tough.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

All right. Well, here's the first sentence. ⁓

I spilled water on the floor so I'm going to go tall.

my god, that's exactly what I was gonna say. I spilled water on the floor, so I'm gonna grab the towel. Right? Yeah, so that we both did it. That's right. Okay, so we're we're vibing with the Delco dialect right now. We got it. It's gonna be a fun game. Okay, here's the second one. I have to go into work on Saturday, Sunday and

Thank you.

I gotta go to work on Saturday, Sunday, Monday.

Okay, this is what I saw. have to go into friggin' work on Saturday, Sunday, Monday.

The Sunday Monday was a Delco thing. Sunday Monday, you gotta run, it's the ease. Okay, Saturday, Sunday, Monday. All right, so there's a second one. All right, here's a third one. I was walking my dog down by the Schuylkill and she ran off with the hoagie I bought

Cindy Monday.

you

All right, I was walking my dog,

down by the school girl, and she ran off with my hoagie.

down by the skookle and she ran off with the hoagie I bought.

That's pretty close, alright? I was walking my dog down by the skookle and she run off with my hoagie I bought. Okay, that's my interpretation. Here's the last one. Tell that friend you brought to the party to take off her mask, it's freaking me out.

Tell your friend that wear the mask to the party. No, that's probably Boston. That she's wearing that mask is freaking me out. Freaking freaking me out.

Yeah, okay, a little,

freaking me out. So tell that Jawn you brought to the party to take off that mask, it's freaking me out.

There you go, there's.

Wow, so

the things that I say that people are usually like, oh, you got an accent, is like a house and about. And I like to just throw one in like basil instead of basil and tomato just to see if

Yeah, about.

Instead of I

A bit.

bet that probably freaks some people out.

I feel like this is not talked about enough, Elizabeth, but before the PA state house became controlled by Democrats, Republicans were just one session away from making a ballot measure to change the PA state constitution to ban abortion. So that basically means that every Democrat that we elect to keep and expand that majority protects the right to choose in Pennsylvania.

And, you know, by the way, neither the governor nor the Supreme Court in Pennsylvania could do anything if the state constitution was amended by a ballot measure. So I just know that you will protect reproductive freedom in Pennsylvania, and I'm very grateful for that.

Well, and that's the thing that most people don't understand is that the way our government is situated in the state of Pennsylvania, if both houses, which right now the Senate is controlled by the Republicans, if they recapture the House, they can put things right to the ballot.

with all the misinformation, how would you vote on something like ⁓ your bodily autonomy or your reproductive freedom? They could really screw things up.

Yeah, right.

very quickly and the governor's veto would mean nothing because he can't veto it.

Yeah.

It would mean nothing.

Exactly. And the state Supreme Court would have to abide by the Constitution, essentially, be a constitutional change. And I just don't think people realize how big of a deal that is. you know, ballot

are expensive. I don't think people realize how expensive they are. California has had the most amount in the country. I did some research on this. Hundreds of millions of dollars go into these ballot initiatives because people have to be educated, right? You have to educate people on how to vote. And so do I trust that the people of Pennsylvania would get it right if it did get to that? I would hope so. But what a waste of money. What a waste of money trying to protect an inalienable right to bodily autonomy.

Bye.

Right,

you grew up in Michigan along the shores of the Great Lakes. Do you ever go back and see your fourth cousin once removed every once in a while?

Yes, my father's no longer with us and I miss him every day. ⁓ In fact, tonight, Vince and I were outside watching the Harvest Moonrise and that's something he always taught was respect for nature and

⁓ I miss him dearly. I miss my mom. I try to get back as often as I can, but I'm a small business owner. And so very often I have to be here to keep things running. And I talked to her all the time. It's funny because my name's Elizabeth and she never wanted me to be called Liz, but as she gets older, she calls me Liz. And when I call her, she's very excited about the fact that I have a cafe.

and that I'm carrying on the tradition of setting the table for my community. And I have a little bit of her obsession with collecting dishes. I just love all those old diner dishes because they're so nostalgic and fun. And Pennsylvania has a lot of cool diners that you can visit. it's a really special thing getting people around the table.

Yeah.

⁓ yes. ⁓ yes.

That's great. I think it's funny that your mom starts calling you Liz because when I first met you, I asked you like, can you be called Liz? You were like, no, you do not call me Liz. I'm Elizabeth. And so I think it's funny that your mom is not calling you Liz.

You

She's now calling

me. And the thing is, that she, you know, had named all of us after all the saints. And so I'm named after Elizabeth Ann Seton, who is the first American saint.

there will not ever be a St. Liz, so St. Elizabeth it will be.

Well let's play some Michigan trivia, okay? I want to see how well you know Michigan, alright? People who live in Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas are called what?

my.

Okay.

So if you live in the UP, your Yoopers and below your trolls.

That

is correct because they live below the mac-a-nac, the mac-

The bridge, ⁓ know

it's the longest suspension bridge and it's the it's the Mackinac Bridge connects the upper. Yeah, yep. Yep, no, it's French. Yeah. ⁓

Mackinac I was gonna say Mackinac, but I guess the C is silent That's French there you go. Well, that's why I need you to help me out with this trivia Well,

you're off to a good start. Okay. Here's another one. The city of Detroit was the first to have this at an intersection

Hang on, was this stoplight?

It was a four-way traffic light. Very good. The world's first four-way traffic signal was invented in Detroit by Officer William Potts in 1920. Very good. All how about this one? No place in the state is more than six miles from what? That's true, an inland lake. Very good.

Okay.

Motor City, yes!

a body of water.

And I am actually, when I was in college,

I interned in the Michigan House of Representatives and my job was to investigate riparian rights. So that means your access to waterways. And really my boss just wanted to find a way that he could go fishing. ⁓ So I became the expert on riparian access, which is your ability to access any of those bodies of water.

haha

Riparian is access to water. Riparian. I wonder what the root of that word is. Riparian. Interesting. I'm sure. Well, water it is. All here's the last one. Grand Rapids, Michigan's ⁓ second largest city, is known as what?

I don't know, it's probably Latin something.

It is the home of the Gerald R. Ford Museum. It also is the headquarters for the Amway Corporation. It's got rapids. What else does it have? I'm trying to think. What are you looking at?

You're pretty close. What I

found was it's also known as the furniture city. ⁓ Due to its history, yep, large furniture producer. So I learned so much about Michigan, know, what a place.

yeah, because of steel case. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Office furniture. Yep.

carrying iron ore, They would shake the windows of my high school so loudly that the teachers would have to stop talking because you couldn't hear it. It's pretty cool.

Okay.

That's crazy.

Well, if I ever go and visit, you'll have to protect me from the youpers and the trolls.

Gotta go to,

Elizabeth, the current Republican state rep serving in your district has an A rating from the NRA. He voted against banning the sale or the possession of assault weapons for individuals under 21. And he voted to get rid of requiring a permit for concealed carry and won't even vote for safe storage of firearms. I think you and I both agree there's a gun epidemic in America.

We have so many people who have shared stories with me, tragic stories of losing loved ones, young kids. And if your goal is to make our community safe, we need to have sensible laws in place. I mean, I grew up in a state where

Gaming and all of that is important and my brothers had guns, but they were responsible about them. We're not talking about People who don't abide the law abide by the law We're talking about those areas that we have to be smart

and My kids are very worried about me running for office because they're like look what happens when guns get in the wrong hands, but

The thing is, is that we can have both safe communities and legislation in place. It doesn't have to be an either or. The difference with me and my opponent is he's got the gun lobby in his back pocket telling him what to do. And I'm listening to the people because

When you run for a state representative, yes, you represent your area, but you also represent the Commonwealth. And so I always say common good for the Commonwealth. have to have smart things that keep our community safe. And there's no reason to have ghost guns and bump stocks and all this. You know, it's insane.

high capacity magazines

and assault rifles. We need representatives like yourself

prioritize the safety of our children over selfishness and greed. We need that. ⁓

I'd be willing to talk to anybody about this. Like

help me understand what you're afraid of. Because I think fear is used so many times to keep us apart from one another. And I'm willing to listen to people and hear what they have to say. In fact, I write about that in my book. I sat down with a guy who was so adamant about the second amendment, right? And I said, we don't disagree with each other.

I support the second amendment as well, but we have to be able to keep our community safe. And we do.

Yes, yeah, absolutely,

we do. And I'm glad that you'll bring that ideology to the people's house in Harrisburg and get it done.

Elizabeth, for someone who isn't as engaged in politics as we are, what would you say to inspire them to vote in the election coming up this November 4th?

no, man, I had some, was knocking doors yesterday and a woman, ⁓ she was Republican. She said, I'm not going to vote next time. And I said, you have to vote because our vote is the way democracy works. When you use your voice and, and voice your opinion, that's important, but that's only half the story. You have to be willing to talk in your community to find.

reliable resources for information so that you can make an educated vote. That's getting really hard these days and that's why I am trying to open opportunities for people to

think you've got to do that, but you have to vote. Voting is something that people fought and died for. And I think about my father who served in the military and

He was drafted right out of high school.

and he fought in so many of our elders fought and died for this country. We owe them the respect to make sure we're doing our part to uphold the democracy that they sacrificed for.

Yeah, I mean, our vote is the most powerful thing that we have to make change.

It really is. It really is. And my women's studies

degree,

I dove really deep into the suffragist movement. And when my kids were young, I used to dress up like a suffragette and I'd go in and talk to the kids. Women were property before that. And other people in our country were property before they had the right of full citizenship, which means the vote. We have to continue to preserve.

protect and defend. That's our job too.

but I mean, this isn't the first time we've been here. And if you look back in our history, we've had cycles and maybe this one feels the most challenging, but I always, I tell a lot of people, this is our slingshot moment.

We are being pulled back.

But where we're heading, as long as we have a vision of where we're heading, is going to be further than where we were. And that's what's happened historically. People have been pulled back, they've been persecuted and abused and terrible things have happened. But there's always a human spirit. And that's what I keep calling to is that human spirit that says, hey, no

But I truly believe this is our moment. There's ⁓ a proverb, for such a time as this you were born. I think we're all here because somehow we are part of moving this forward and we cannot give up on each other. And we are never alone. There are so many people who care.

Thank you.

Yeah, people like you give me hope. We cannot give into apathy. We have to keep moving forward.

let's play another game called Let's Get Engaged. So we're going to pretend like we've just met each other. But I have to get you engaged in the election coming up. But we have to craft it like a marriage proposal. ⁓ So I'm going to go first just to kind of set the stage to give you an idea. And you can do the same to me.

Okay.

Okay.

Got it.

Elizabeth, I know we just met and I know we haven't known each other that long, but I just feel like we have this connection with each other. Like we have the same morals and the same values and that we could just do great things together

And obviously, I need to talk to your family first, your parents and your cousins and your, I want everyone to be involved in this relationship, but I was really hoping.

that the two of us could just get together with your family on November 4th and seal the deal and vote for more Democrats up and down the ballot. Can we do that together? Would you do that with me? Okay, good. All right. You accept my proposal? Okay. Okay. All right. You do the same back to me.

We can definitely do that. I accept.

Okay, so Zeke, I want to see you have a life that is full and that helps you accomplish all the things that you really dream of and hope for. And I want to see you have every advantage to making an amazing life for yourself and the people you love. I just can't imagine another way for you to make that happen.

But for you to say yes to November 4th, it's everything honey. It's all, ⁓ it's, yeah, we're going. Yeah. Let's go all the way.

November 4th? With you? With you? You and me together? Okay. Okay. Good. I do. I do. It's done. I do.

If only all interactions at the doors could go like that. It'd be so much easier to go door

You know?

You know? Just propose to everyone over and over again. I'd even get down on my knee. I would do it. I'd put on the... Yeah. Exactly.

That would be cute. Just say yes to the vote. I mean, it's it's looks good on you.

Thank you.

Well, you worked with your community to save Crebilly Farm. Why was this project so important to you?

You have a historic farm that's part of the Brandywine Battlefield.

The community had subsidized the farm under Act 319, which is, I'm a real estate broker so I can talk about this. So when you have a property that's 10 acres or more in the state of Pennsylvania, you can enroll in Act 319, which you get lesser tax for promising not to develop the land. Well, they had it in that program for over 40 years.

And when you develop a land, you only have to pay back taxes of seven years. So the community

would get ripped off, right? But it was going to add a lot of stress for services and emergency and everything. Bad idea altogether. Now understand, I'm a real estate broker. At the time, my office was like, why would you stop the development? And I took a lot of heat for it. But the community asked that we step up and we did. So we got legal standing.

We became court-appointed interveners so that we had the ability to weigh in. Over the seven-year battle, it was

We did so much. my gosh, it was exhausting. Half the time, I thought we were crazy because Toll Brothers is a very large, deep pocket organization and I didn't think we would be able to do it. But it all came

So this was truly a community effort to save this farm that's so valuable environmentally, historically and otherwise. But the cool story for me is afterwards, I'm at the cafe, and I'm waiting on customers and this gentleman walks up and I recognized him immediately. And it was the owner of Crebilly Farm. And

⁓ wow.

I looked on the back of his credit card to make sure because he didn't know who I was, but I kind of knew who he was. And I said, thank you for all you've done to save Crebilly Farm. And he said, well, how do you know about that? And I said, well, we just kind of been following it.

And I think he figured out who I was and he brought his wife and daughter and granddaughter back.

⁓

And so my husband being the way he is took a bottle of champagne out to them. And he said, somebody ordered a bottle of champagne. And they were like, no, we didn't order a bottle of champagne. And he said, well, a bottle of champagne is in order. We should all celebrate what you did for Crebilly

And it never would have happened if we listened to people who said, you're crazy, it's a done deal. We didn't listen to them. And that's why I say to people now is do not give up. It's not over till it's over. And it's not over as long as people care.

seven years, it was a seven year battle and you didn't give up.

Yeah, expensive.

Well, I mean, that's what it's going to take for you to work in Harrisburg. You're going to be in for the long game and you're not going to give up. Those are the kind of people we need fighting for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. What a great story.

And yep.

That's why we have a cafe

You founded and own Centerville Place Cafe and Market, which is located in Delaware, and I've been told that from time to time a very famous person stops by. So who is that person that stops by?

So we are so honored to have the first lady, Biden, Dr. Jill Biden join us. And it's so great. And one time so far, her husband joined her. The president came and it was really cute because he came in ⁓ after everything was over. And I said, hey there, Sunny, are you looking for a job?

That's awesome.

Hahaha.

He's like,

yeah, do you think I could work here? he's very, I mean, this is the thing I've learned from about politicians on all sides. Yeah, when you're talking face to face with them and they're not in the news. Most people are really, we're just all humans just trying our best. And he's very funny

She's like, hey Joe, Elizabeth's running again. And so I said, you think I'll go door to door with them? And the Secret Service is like, yeah, I think you'd go door to door with you. And I'm like, Mr. President, you have done your share. So yeah.

Hahaha

Yes. Yeah, do you have

any ice cream at your cafe?

You

know what I carried? ⁓ drives me nuts. I carried chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream for like ever. And then I was like, no, he's never going to come. And so I just stopped carrying it and then sure enough he shows up. But he likes, I make really good Malte berry muffins and those are his favorite.

Try the issue.

sounds good. I still haven't been there. I need to get my family out to your cafe one of these days and enjoy the muffins and just a good company.

Huh.

Yeah,

the current Republican state rep serving in your district voted against barring individuals who have engaged in a rebellion or insurrection against the United States from holding office in the General Assembly. And this makes sense because he votes greater than 80 % of the time with Doug Mastriano, who was at the insurrection on January 6th and is still serving in our state Senate.

Bye.

So I'm assuming that when you win, you're not going to be voting with Doug Mastriano.

The insurrection actually took place in Pennsylvania before it went to Washington, D.C. So the fact that as a leader, you are paying for people to get on the bus and go, I'll never forget that day as long as I live because

that day has been scarred and it should have been a day of

And now it has this message of violence and just desecration to something that I mean, when I was a kid, I used to watch political conventions with my dad because he was very interested in all that. And I think it was probably one on one time with him, but

I grew up loving our democracy and I still have such belief that we are going to, we the people, we are going to pull it together. no matter what anybody says, I still believe it is the best system on earth and we just need to make it more perfect and bring people together to

more conversations and more dialogue about how we can make it better.

It's a good system because there are good people who want to make the system work and people like you. That's why it's a good system.

And you, you know what, I

gotta go off on a little thing here. I watch what you do and your commitment. I mean, you're working a full-time job as a doctor all day long and I know your job is stressful. And yet here we are, it's almost 10 o'clock at night and you and I are talking about these issues and things that matter. Zeke, you're just a treasure of the state of Pennsylvania and I just want...

to sure people realize how much I know you do. I remember when I first started running for last cycle, seeing that you were willing to support a complete stranger and help me raise funds, which that is so important. And so I just want to say thank you for all you're doing, because I know it's a lot and you and your family do it.

Absolutely. Thank you.

Yes,

it is a family affair. But when you have kids and you want them to grow up in a better world, it's kind of your job, right? This is our job, is to give our kids a better world. And so that's why we do

It is. That's why we do this.

Well, Elizabeth, how do democratic policies help you as a small business owner?

So it's really interesting because my business is in Delaware and Delaware has a lot of legislation. Like right now they have a $15 minimum wage. They have paid family leave. They have a savings plan for workers who may not have the ability to have a retirement plan. And all these are things that workers can opt into.

And it's really interesting because I'm like inches from the Pennsylvania border and I have kids, I hire kids from Pennsylvania all the time and they choose to come to me because they know I'm going to pay them what's considered a livable wage. It's $15 an hour, still pretty low, but at least we're moving in the right direction. And the way they did it was they did it gradually because small business owners, have so, it's really hard.

because costs are going up.

now we got to deal with tariffs on things like coffee and other things that who knew, eggs were, they went from a dollar, a dozen to $12 a dozen, and now they're getting more reasonable, but it's expensive to run a small business. And it's also hard to find labor because we don't have access to as much as we used to, um, for, I'm not even going to get into that.

But where democratic policies are helpful is that they support small businesses. And I think my perspective as a legislator is going to be, let's figure out how we can cut some of the other expenses that hit small businesses like high electricity, ridiculous. We pay so much in bank fees every time you swipe that little card.

⁓ That costs us ton of money. I mean, it's every time that card swipes, it's a little bit of our income going out the door to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars a

But also like I can call upon the state legislators in Delaware when we're having challenges with stuff.

And it's amazing how responsive they are. And that's really nice, even though I'm not a resident there. ⁓ It's night and day between the two states. And Pennsylvania is so much bigger and so much more diverse than a small state like Delaware. But I think if you look at the surrounding states, they all have raised their minimum wage.

Mm-hmm.

I mean, I'm a Pennsylvania gal at heart, but it is interesting to see when you have a democratic legislature, the things that they can make happen.

yeah, 100%. I mean, the democratically controlled state house in Pennsylvania has tried to raise a minimum wage multiple times, but the Republican controlled state Senate has refused. So, know, Pennsylvania stuck at $7.25 an hour. And like, yeah.

Mm-hmm.

And he said,

and my opponent said, well, we can't raise it. It doesn't mean anything to the middle of the state. And it's like, there are so many ways that we can do it gradually. And as a business owner, I don't want to double the payroll of a small business owner without having a plan to help them get there through incentives and different things like that. And I think that's what the house is trying to do.

Right. Right.

It just to say no is such

Yeah.

It's like people can't live on that. And then the beauty of it is, is if you put these dollars in the pockets of our constituents, they're going to go buy stuff in the community and help help the local economy as well. It's not like you're going to put it in a trust fund.

Right.

Right, yeah.

Right, I mean look, Delaware figured it out and as you said, the surrounding states have figured it out and all the small businesses haven't been closed.

New Jersey.

So we need you to get in there, we need to flip the state senate, raise a minimum wage and help small businesses in Pennsylvania grow.

Elizabeth, you do a lot of door knocking for your campaign and I will never forget. I think I left your district during your previous campaign. It started raining terribly and you texted me, I think I left at like 4 or 5 p.m. You gave me a text at 10 p.m. and you just finished knocking doors because you had a quota you had to meet because you based on the number of doors you knock you get extra funding from the state party and I just

Mm-hmm.

I couldn't believe you're like, yeah, my clothing was soaked and my business cards were falling apart. But I'm just, you know, that's a grind you can't teach. And I just hope that people realize when they see you, how much you care about this office you're running for, how much work you put into it, and how you just, you have this great attitude about it. you just keep moving forward, no matter what's happening, even bad weather, it's just wonderful to see.

Thank

⁓ Vince and I have five kids.

and they are all graduates of Pennsylvania colleges and universities and we're so proud of them. We want to help make a better Pennsylvania for them and for all the kids of the state. And I just will not stop. And if the people of Pennsylvania don't decide to give me an office, I'll keep doing what I do and serving the people. I'll find a way because that matters.

Well, if you're

in Chester County or Delco in a wet, ⁓ Elizabeth Moro shows up to your door, please be nice to her because she just wants to be your state rep, okay?

You

be nice.

That was

a crazy night. That was a crazy night. That was...

That was a, I still can't believe it.

but after that text I

was like, Elizabeth Moro, are the real deal.

Elizabeth, why are you a Democrat? And why do you choose to represent the Democratic Party?

I am very pro individual rights. That's more represented by the Democratic party. And there's this growing divide between the two sides that I saw happening when I was running for US Congress. And I think it's perpetrated by the leadership at the top that keeps talking

the enemies of our state and just vitriol that I could never

be associated with.

But there are issues that I believe we as human beings believe in is everybody who works hard wants to provide for the people that they love. And at the end of the day, you do not want big government coming into your bedroom into your home.

into your life telling you how to live. That's not how the American way is.

And those are the things that I think we can all agree upon is let's move forward. We can't recycle ideals of the past. Those racial and hateful things that are being said today, they have no place in our current time. And we need to really, as a party, think, embrace our roots as being the party that opens doors for people so that they can be

the very best that they can be.

I'm glad that you represent the Democratic Party and hold the same ideals that I do.

Me too.

What gives you hope?

I just believe so deeply in the human spirit. That's what gives me hope is that I am so grateful to be alive and every day I get out of bed, I say thank you, thank you for another chance. It's not been an easy path to be in this world because a lot of people think a lot of things of you and a lot of lies get told of you

I'm getting better at having thick skin, but it doesn't come naturally for me. So I have to seek out the goodness in people and really believe in humankind. And in the end, we all want what's best.

you give me hope Elizabeth.

And my last question for you is what plans do you have to get yourself through these next few years?

I'm going to continue doing what I do every day is get up and go out and meet my community. And I

the really cool thing about, ⁓ what I do now is when my campaign ended for Congress, the way I got out of my sadness and it was depression was I cooked my way through it. and by cooking, I was in that creative space where I could.

provide something of nourishment for others. And that's what I get to do every single day. I get to create a space where people can come together. And no matter what office I have, I will always do that. And I can't wait to go into the schools and talk to the kids and talk to the parents about what we can do together to go into the libraries and the hospitals and really be with the people and

Um, because that's where I get my energy from the conversations I had. Um, one of the door knocks I had on Sunday was, um, this one gentleman said, Oh my gosh, could you please come talk to mom? She's going to be so excited that a Democrat is here. And we talked for a half an hour about everything from how she could vote to her little dog who she said was 147 dog years and was still going strong.

Mm-hmm.

and the recipes and her heritage. And it's just like, you know what, that's what bridges us. It's all these threads and we can't this current time rip those threads of community because that is our common unity. And that's what I'll keep working for every day till the day I'm done.

Well, Elizabeth Moro running in PA 160 for the house seat that needs to be flipped. Finally, it needs to be flipped next year. How can people support your campaign?

⁓ it does. ⁓

So we are rebuilding my website because last cycle I just did it myself and it's not all snazzy. So we're gonna make it snazzy, but it's ElizabethMoro.com and it's M-O-R-O, very simple. And I always say, think of Moro for a better tomorrow. ⁓ And the picture behind me, I had that poster hanging.

That's right.

in my bedroom in Michigan when I was a little kid so I always knew someday I would be serving the people of Pennsylvania and I cannot wait to do that.

I can't wait either. can't vote for you, unfortunately. You're not in my district, but you better believe I'll be supporting you the whole entire time. Getting the message out there. I will. And I just believe so much in you. And I'm just so grateful that you don't give up and you keep moving forward. And I hope next year is your year. You deserve it. The people of Pennsylvania deserve it. And I just wish you the best of luck. And I know that we're going to be in touch.

Thank you. You're the best.

It will be.

Thank you so much, my dear friend. Give a hug to all the family.

Absolutely. I will.

Well thank you so much for joining me here on The Zekely Podcast. Stay hopeful and get involved and until next time, let's keep building a stronger Pennsylvania together.