Freshman Democrat state Rep. Paul Drucker will have a challenger for the 157th House District.

Phoenixville Borough Councilman Kendrick Buckwalter told The Mercury he is seeking the Republican nomination to run for the 157th state House District.

Buckwalter told reporter Dennis Wright he is a mainstream conservative who takes constitutional government seriously.

A Phoenixville resident, Buckwalter is a small businessman and 15-year veteran of municipal government in the borough. He has served as chairman of Phoenixville's zoning hearing board, and has been elected to two terms on Borough Council, where he currently serves. He has also volunteered as a firefighter.

The district includes Phoenixville, Schuylkill and Tredyffrin townships in Chester County, and portions of Lower Providence and West Norriton in Montgomery County.

The seat was held by Rep. Carole Rubley from 1993 until her retirement in 2008. Political insiders blame Rubley's failure to endorse the Republican candidate as her successor for handing the seat to the Democrats in 2008. Drucker beat GOP challenger Guy Ciarrocchi by a margin of 50.9% to 49.1%.

Read more about Buckwalter in The Mercury.

For more on Buckwalter, check out his campaign Web site, http://buckwalterforpa.com/