Homefield advantage weighed heavy as Pinsley won Democratic primary for state Senate's 16th District

SOUTH WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. — In a race that drew statewide attention, Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley seized on homefield advantage to claim victory in the Democratic primary for the Pennsylvania Senate's 16th District.

An analysis of precinct-level results showed Pinsley won all 57 Lehigh County precincts on his way to earning 54.2% of the vote total.

His opponent, Pennridge school board member Bradley Merkl-Gump, swept Bucks County precincts, but Lehigh Democrats were a bigger piece of the prize.

Pinsley earned just under 73% of votes from 13,235 Lehigh County Democrats who voted in the race; Merkl-Gump posted a slightly smaller figure — 70.1% — in Bucks, where just over 10,000 Democrats voted, according to LehighValleyNews.com's analysis of complete but unofficial results.

Pinsley said he spent twice as much time campaigning in Bucks County as he did in Lehigh County, where he’s “been in the news a fair amount” since taking public office seven years ago and “people know who I am.”

He also expected — and believes he received — a small advantage because candidates have their home counties listed next to their names.

“We’re still sort of a provincial area, so I think that he got some votes from Bucks County because he's from Bucks County, and I think I got some votes from Lehigh County because I'm in Lehigh County,” Pinsley said.

Pinsley's best Bucks County performance was in a Quakertown Borough precinct, where he lost by just one vote, picking up 49.7% of the vote there; he earned more than 40 percent in seven other Bucks County precincts.

Merkel-Gump’s best showing in Lehigh County saw him earn 41.2% of the vote in a South Whitehall precinct, the only place he eclipsed 40% in the county, according to unofficial results.

But Pinsley, who is from South Whitehall Township, easily won his home precinct with almost 80% of the vote there.

Dems targeting 16th District

Voter registration statistics show Republicans have a healthy advantage in the 16th District, but local Democrats beat expectations at the polls in 2025 as the Trump administration grew increasingly polarizing.

The state senator spoke ahead of President Donald Trump at his PPL Center rally in the final days of the 2024 campaign. His seat could be in play if that trend continues into November.

Coleman ousted longtime incumbent Pat Browne in 2022 soon after the district was redrawn. Pinsley, who is in his second term as Lehigh County controller, launched his state Senate campaign in February while also running for the Lehigh Valley’s congressional seat.

Pinsley told LehighValleyNews.com that he “feel(s) the pressure” of being in a race that could help Democrats gain control of the Senate for the first time in more than 30 years.

Flipping the Senate could give Democrats full control of state government. Gov. Josh Shapiro is facing Republican Treasurer Stacy Garrity in his bid for re-election, and the state House of Representatives also is in play in November.

“Obviously, I’m running to win regardless of whether this flips the Senate or not,” Pinsley said. But a trifecta would give Democrats “an opportunity to prove that we can reduce the cost of living” and “get stuff done.”

“And then, quite honestly, the pressure is on us to actually get stuff done,” he said. “It’s not just about winning; it’s about winning and doing.”

'Anti-establishment candidate'

Party leaders strongly supported Merkl-Gump in the primary, as the Bucks County candidate got almost $290,000 from the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee and incumbent senators, according to campaign finance records.

The PA SDCC gave Merkl-Gump about $150,000, while the party gave him $88,369; and five Democratic senators — including the Lehigh Valley’s Nick Miller and Lisa Boscola — chipped in another $50,000, online records show.

But Pinsley said he expects the full backing of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party in his race against incumbent Republican Sen. Jarrett Coleman, though he still feels like the “anti-establishment candidate.”

“I’ve been welcomed back in (by the party) because they want to win and I want to win,” he said. “We're all working together, but at the end of the day, I still believe that we need to see major changes in how our government functions — that those changes really need to be focused on the people rather than the powerful.”

“I tend to believe that both parties have given too much weight to the super wealthy,” Pinsley said. “And that's where the lobbyists come in, that's where all of these things derail the laws that are needed for the average person.”

Skill games

Reforming Pennsylvania’s income and property taxes, regulating AI and data centers, and establishing a $45,000 yearly minimum wage were among Pinsley’s primary focuses.

Coleman, an airline pilot and former Parkland School Board member, in his first three and half years as senator has helped enact legislation requiring parents to be alerted when weapons are found on school campuses.

He’s also pushed for greater transparency into BusPatrol, an automated school bus enforcement system, and Allentown’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone — a one-of-a-kind downtown tax district.

But discourse over skill games and how to tax them could become a major part of the general election race between Coleman and Pinsley.

Gaming and gambling companies spent more than $8 million on primary candidates throughout Pennsylvania this year, according to a report by Spotlight PA.

That included $426,000 for Coleman’s re-election campaign from the Operators for Skill PAC, the political arm of Pace-o-Matic, an industry-leading skill games developer and distributor, Spotlight PA reports.

Coleman said he opposes any taxes on skill games after Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro’s 2026-27 budget proposal included regulations and a 52% tax on operators, which his administration said would raise $2 billion in revenue.

A PAC that appears to be linked to the skill games industry appears to have gotten involved in Pinsley’s primary, as well.

Protecting Our Democracy — chaired by an industry-adjacent executive — distributed a mailer that urged voters to support Pinsley and was labeled “antisemitic” by Bucks County Democratic Party Chair Steve Santarsiero, according to the Spotlight PA report.

Pinsley said he expects industry elements are “going to make (the skill games discussion) a thing” in his race against Coleman, but he hasn’t made it a part of his own campaign platform.

“I don't have a position on skilled gaming, quite honestly,” he said. “It has not been my focus, because my focus has really been kitchen-table issues.”