Lehigh Valley Politics and Election News

Incumbent Easton City Council members Taiba Sultana and Roger Ruggles lost in the Democratic primary, according to unofficial election returns. Susan Hartranft-Bittinger defeated Sultana and Frank Graziano outpaced Ruggles.

Polling places across the Lehigh Valley faced mainly light turnout throughout Primary Election Day, with early morning turnout lagging.

So far, two Macungie residents have applied to fill an open seat on the borough council. On Monday, the body's current members asked them a few questions.

In this week's episode of Political Pulse, host Tom Shortell and political scientist Chris Borick talk about the Lehigh Valley's "packed primary" and the highly contested races to keep an eye on.

Tuesday, May 20, is Primary Election Day in Pennsylvania. Several high-profile local races are on the ballot in Lehigh and Northampton counties. Check out our procrastinator's guide and Q&A.

More than 48,000 people have requested a mail-in ballot in Lehigh and Northampton counties ahead of Tuesday's primary election. Even if thousands of those never get turned in, it should mark an increase from the 2021 local primary.

In Tuesday's Democratic primary election, two challengers are on the ballot to face off against incumbent council members Roger Ruggles and Taiba Sultana.

Republicans Roger MacLean and Mike Welsh have spent less than $8,000 combined on their race. Meanwhile, their Democratic opponent Josh Siegel has amassed more than $180,000 in his war chest. The primary election is Tuesday, May 20.

Republicans Roger MacLean and Mike Welsh contend they're each the best person to end their party's 20-year losing streak in the Lehigh County executive race. The winner of the May primary will take on Democrat Josh Siegel in the November race.

Lehigh County Executive Phil Armstrong joins Tom Shortell on this week's episode of Political Pulse to explain how county government fills vital social service roles and what duties come with the county executive role.

Steve Lynch, candidate for Northampton County executive, used the vaccine mandate issue at Gracedale to address a crowd on Oct. 25, 2021, one week before the election.

The five-member Legislative Reapportionment Commission has been waiting for a final, cleaned-up package of census data since the summer.

A recently filed federal lawsuit claims dispatchers at local 911 call centers drank alcohol, slept, and watched movies on the clock.

President Joe Biden is trying to drum up support for a several trillion-dollar infrastructure spending plan that's being negotiated in Congress. The effort included returning to his boyhood home of Scranton.

Voters in Allentown will have the chance to remove English as the city’s “official” language in the upcoming election.

Mike Doyle, who has represented western Pennsylvania in Congress for more than a quarter-century and became the dean of Pennsylvania’s Congressional delegation, announced Monday that he will not run again for re-election. As WESA was first to report early this morning, the move comes as the incumbent faced a challenge from the left next year and — if he won — the prospect of being in the minority party in the U.S. House.

The Pennsylvania Department of State oversees the commonwealth’s elections. The agency is led by Veronica Degraffenreid, who assumed the role of acting secretary of state on Feb. 8.

Touting census data that shows a strong uptick in Pennsylvania’s non-White population, representatives from some of Pennsylvania’s communities of color say new political boundaries should give them a chance for stronger representation in Harrisburg.

The two candidates, Republican Tim Ramos and Democrat Matt Tuerk faced off in a debate Thursday night on PBS39 and WLVR.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro made his long-awaited campaign for governor official in Pittsburgh Wednesday morning, solidifying his status as the Democrats’ almost-certain nominee in a state where the party has little margin for error.

A new investigative report has confirmed two Pennsylvania lawmakers with ties to the “Stop the Steal” movement were actively involved in pressuring the U.S. Justice Department to investigate disproven claims of fraud in the 2020 election.

The contest to replace outgoing Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey — one of the most closely watched Senate races in the country — is well underway. Dozens of candidates have announced bids for the seat, and several with national name recognition have raised millions to fund their efforts.