Lehigh Valley Politics and Election News

Sandy Simon ran and won her position as a poll worker in 1996. She has reported twice a year to prepare for the primary election every spring and the general every first Tuesday after the first Monday every November.

A group of young changemakers are working hard to draw more Gen Zers into local politics, and to the polls. But in serving the interests of their country in the political field, they’re doing it behind the scenes instead of in a public-facing role.

With Election Day nearly upon us, our reporters fanned out across the region to find out where folks stood on issues that have defined American politics. This is what they heard.

Lehigh Valley voters will help decide some of the nation's most closely-watched contests — Fetterman vs. Oz and Wild vs. Scheller. Here's a look up and down the ballots.

Oz took over a Bethlehem Township warehouse to rally voters along with Congressional candidate Lisa Scheller, with 48 hours to go in the race.

Abortion is a key reason many people will be casting a ballot in the midterm election. People in Bethlehem talk about why they feel so strongly about the issue.

The third-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives spoke during Sunday's service at Greater Shiloh Church. He urged voters to keep Democrats in control of Pennsylvania's 7th District, and the House.

Democrat Mark Pinsley and Republican Jarrett Coleman traded verbal jabs during Thursday's half-hour debate hosted by Business Matters.

Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley addressed about 150 donors at a Lisa Scheller political fundraiser Wednesday night. Scheller, a Republican, is attempting to oust Democratic incumbent Susan Wild from PA's 7th Congressional District.

John Fetterman's health and familiar attack ads dominated the debate between Pennsylvania's senate candidates Tuesday night. Fetterman and Oz touched on a wide array of subjects, from abortion to gun control to the economy to the candidates' personal background.

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild said the House Ethics Committee is split in deliberations over how to handle an investigations into former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz on allegations of sexual misconduct. President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Gaetz to lead the Justice Department.

The Lehigh County Board of Elections voted 3-0 to certify 191,158 ballots Wednesday afternoon. Fights over how to count contested provisional ballots are already popping up in the neck-and-neck U.S. Senate race between Bob Casey and David McCormick.

Northampton County's elections commission voted in a multi-day hearing to count provisional ballots missing certain signatures. Their decision has been challenged in county court.

Allentown City Councilman Ed Zucal officially kicked off his campaign for mayor Tuesday at Fairgrounds Hotel.

This week on Political Pulse, Tom Shortell and Chris Borick talk about political campaign budgets and funding, comparing this year's election cycle to those past.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court order Monday is a win for David McCormick and a loss for U.S. Sen. Bob Casey as the campaigns prepare for a statewide recount and press counties for favorable ballot-counting decisions.

Allentown City Council President Cynthia Mota will face Councilman Ed Zucal and Mayor Matt Tuerk in the 2025 Democratic primary.

U.S. Rep.-elect Ryan Mackenzie said he expects the incoming Congress and Trump administration to attempt to pull back funding for some projects approved by the Biden administration. "We do want to make sure that the priorities and that the things we want to be achieving, not only as a country but in our local community, are met," he said in an interview with LehighValleyNews.com.

Mayor Matt Tuerk is seeking a second term but faces challenges from City Council President Cynthia Mota and member Ed Zucal.

Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt ordered the recount in the race between U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and David McCormick, based on results that remain unofficial from the Nov. 5 general election.

Northampton County officials will sort through nearly 4,000 provisional ballots. A significant portion of them came from the polling places serving Lehigh University and Lafayette College.

This week on Political Pulse, Tom and Chris talk about the outcomes of the general election — including Northampton County's significance in elections.