ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The field of potential candidates for the upcoming Pennsylvania 22nd state House District special election has come into clearer focus as the deadline for parties to submit their nominee approaches.
Four Democratic candidates — precinct committee person Erlinda Aguilar; Allentown City Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach; Julian Guridy, an aide to state Sen. Nick Miller; and Lewis Shupe, who attempted to launch a congressional campaign in 2024 — submitted their names for consideration ahead of Thursday's 5 p.m. deadline, Lehigh County Democratic Committee Chair Lori McFarland said.
A fifth, Douglas Kunkle, withdrew his nomination.
Most prominent local Democratic leaders have backed Guridy, including Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk, state Reps. Mike Schlossberg and Peter Schweyer and Lehigh County Executive-elect Josh Siegel.
But it will be 20 precinct committee people — rank-and-file party members who live in the district — who will lead the process locally.
They'll interview the candidates and recommend one for the Feb. 24 special election on Saturday.
Aguilar and Guridy, as precinct committee people, will be able to vote for themselves. Siegel, who resigned his 22nd House District seat Dec. 17, triggering the need for a special election, also has a vote.
Other prominent precinct committee people, or PCPs, include Lehigh County Commissioner Geoff Brace, former Allentown School Board Director Sara Brace and former Lehigh County Commissioner candidate Millie Canales.
Registered voters favor Democrats over Republicans in the 22nd District by a 2.5-to-1 margin, according to voter registration data collected by the state.
Meanwhile, Lehigh County Republican Committee Chair Joe Vichot said he had no updates on his party's nomination process, though that could change by Saturday, he said.
Precinct committee people typically do ground-level organization work that parties need to prepare for elections. That can range from posting yard signs, knocking on doors, stuffing literature in envelopes and rallying neighborhoods ahead of elections.
But when there's no primary election to choose a nominee, they have tremendous say in who winds up on the ballot.
Local Republican precinct committee people will have the final say on who will appear on the ballot as the Republican nominee. Democrats leave the ultimate choice to the executive committee of the Pennsylvania Democratic Committee, but it's rare for it to reject the nominee recommended by the county committee and PCPs.
Pennsylvania state law requires parties to submit their nominees no later than 50 days before a special election — Monday in this case. When House Speaker Joanna McClinton called for an early special election on Feb. 24, she left the local party committees 19 days over the holidays to pick a standard-bearer for the election.
Registered voters favor Democrats over Republicans in the 22nd District by a 2.5-to-1 margin, according to voter registration data collected by the state.
It's the largest partisan advantage for either party in any of the Lehigh Valley's 11 House districts. The district includes Allentown's East Allentown neighborhood and parts of Center City as well as the eastern portion of Salisbury Township.
