Three Democratic candidates will face off in an effort to take Republican Rep. Tim Murphy's Congressional seat in the 18th District.

Beth Hafer, Steve O'Donnell and Brien Wall are campaigning hard as the primary nears.

More than 40 municipalities in Allegheny County alone are part of the district -- as well as a long list of communities in Washington and Westmoreland counties and a portion of Beaver County. The 18th District covers North Hunting-don, Irwin and North Irwin.

Beth Hafer

It has been almost one year exactly since Democrat Beth Hafer began looking into running for the 18th Congressional District seat.

As the daughter of former state treasurer and auditor general Barbara Hafer, politics is in her blood.

Hafer, 35, of Mt. Lebanon, said she was fed up with all of the "misguided initiatives," she has seen by other government officials and decided to run for the 18th District in the hope she can bring about change.

In regard to her own plan for the district, which starts at the West Virginia border and continues out to Ligonier, the direction she would take is backed by experience.

Although she never has held an elected office, her background gives her knowledge in government, business and education.

A former public school teacher, she has learned fiscal efficiency at the family business.

Hafer & Associates, founded by her mother, is a national consulting firm that works with both the public and private sectors. The company's goal is to ensure government works better for the people.

Hafer's education includes a bachelor's degree from Penn State University and a master's degree from Duquesne University.

"There are many complex challenges (for the 18th District), but we're going to focus on three things," she said.

Hafer said she wants to develop jobs within the region by investing in alternative energy, ensure every single American gets quality and affordable health care and return ethics and accountability to government.

Steve O'Donnell

Monroeville resident Steve O'Donnell describes himself as an outside guy who has made roads through the inside.

O'Donnell, 62, a Homewood native, picked up the endorsement of Allegheny County Democrats as well as Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll and one-time rival Joe Markosek in his quest to garner the Democratic nod for the 18th Congressional District race.

He said such endorsements are significant because he is not well known in political circles.

"Our challenge was far greater than everybody else's," said O'Donnell, a former U.S. Navy corpsman.

Although he hasn't held an elected office, O'Donnell said the electorate is looking for someone who isn't part of the establishment.

"I don't think it has real play at all in the primary. People are looking for change," he said.

O'Donnell is basing his campaign on domestic issues and if elected, he said he hopes to get universal healthcare, keep Social Security from becoming private accounts, provide better crime-fighting initiatives for local police, and improve school and educational opportunities.

He is opposed to the Iraq War. He said he would work to end the war and withdraw U.S. troops if elected.

O'Donnell said he favors slacking America's thirst for oil through bio-fuels, wind, thermal generation, nuclear fission and clean-burning fossil fuels.

O'Donnell, who is married with two children, runs Nisar Inc. with his wife, Carol. The company provides services to families and children with behavioral health problems.

He is the former executive director of the Westmoreland County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Citizens.

O'Donnell has a master's degree in social work from West Virginia University and is a graduate of Duquesne University.

Brien Wall

Brien Wall says there aren't enough members of U.S. Congress who know what it takes to raise a family and make ends meet on a middle class budget.

That's one reason his first run for public office will be for a seat in the House of Representatives.

"The American public is looking for someone who knows what it's like to raise a family," he said.

Originally from Brookline, Wall, 59, lives in Upper St. Clair and has worked for the past 23 years as a certified family business specialist at Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co.

Married for 32 years with three children, he graduated from South Hills Catholic School and earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1970.

Wall is a veteran of the U.S. Army and was drafted immediately after college during the Vietnam War. He served as a military police officer at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and had top secret clearance.

He has also served as a Democratic committeeman for 26 years and is a founding board member of Allegheny County Health Choice, which oversees the disbursement of Medicaid funds.

Among Wall's chief concerns is the economy. He said leaders in Washington, D.C., are out of touch with how it is affecting the average working class family.

"It scares me the way the country is going."

Securing money to fund infrastructure improvements to roads and bridges -- to stimulate job growth -- as well as increasing funding to the state Community Development Block Grant program also are his top priorities.

"We need to bring jobs back to our region," said Wall.

He said it is time to devise a plan to systematically remove the military from Iraq.

Health care for returning soldiers -- and all citizens of the country -- also is a concern.

"There's no reason people should be without insurance," he said.