Lehigh Valley Politics and Election News

Bob Brooks, a retired Bethlehem firefighter, became the fifth Democrat to enter the race for Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District. The primary election winner in next year's midterm race will take on U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, the Republican incumbent.

If state Rep. Josh Siegel wins the 2025 Lehigh County executive race, it would trigger a possible special election for Pennsylvania's 22nd state House District. Things get complicated from there.

Ce-Ce Gerlach, a Democrat, will officially launch her campaign for state representative of the 22nd District at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 25, according to a news release.

Garrity, a Bradford County native, is the first Republican to formally challenge Democratic incumbent Josh Shapiro in the 2026 race.

U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Lehigh Valley, downplayed President Donald Trump's proposal to slash $32.9 billion from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development following a tour of the Allentown Rescue Mission.

The Lehigh Valley's congressional showdown already is shaping up to be among the nation's costliest races for 2026. Tom Shortell and Chris Borick break it all down in this week's Political Pulse.

More than a month past the budget deadline, Lehigh Valley state Sens. Jarrett Coleman and Nick Miller offered little optimism a deal was around the corner.

U.S. Reps. Ryan Mackenzie and Lisa McClain praised the One Big Beautiful Bill Act for helping manufacturing companies and workers during a tour of Ampal Inc. in Lower Towamensing Township.

Between delayed state funding and federal cuts, Second Harvest Food Bank does not have enough food to meet demand, its leaders say.

Lehigh Country Controller Mark Pinsley criticized President Donald Trump and U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie for gutting the social safety net and Democratic leaders for failing to offer effective resistance.

Deposition transcripts released Wednesday by the Jan. 6 Committee revealed new details about the role that Pennsylvania Republicans played in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

The number of state lawmakers who are Black, Latino or of South Asian descent will rise as part of what House Democrats call the “most diverse class of freshmen legislators” in Pennsylvania history.

Winning candidates in Pennsylvania from governor to Congress are waiting for their victories to become official. Counties across the state with have been inundated with requests to recount the midterm ballots, delaying the ability of the state to certify the results.

Pennsylvania House Republican leader Bryan Cutler is seeking to wait until the May primary before holding special elections in two vacant districts.

U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, perhaps the most powerful politician ever from the Lehigh Valley, made his farewell address on the Senate floor Thursday afternoon.

The total cost of the governor’s race in Pennsylvania topped $100 million in this last election cycle, a staggering amount that set a new spending record in the race to snag the state’s highest office.

Both parties seem to agree that Feb. 7 would be a good date for special elections, but neither party thinks the other has the right to set it. It’s a case of disagreeing to agree. Or something.

Donald Trump’s attacks on fellow Republican David McCormick contributed to the former hedge fund manager’s loss in Pennsylvania’s Senate primary in May. These effects may be long-lasting.

A second Pa. appellate court judge, Deborah Kunselman, will run for an open seat on the state Supreme Court in next November’s election.

Voters with no religious affiliation supported Democratic candidates and abortion rights by staggering percentages in the 2022 midterm elections. And the religiously unaffiliated are growing.

Less than a month after the critical midterm election, Democratic and Republican leaders in the Pennsylvania state House are contesting which party can run the body, a dispute that could determine who has the power to call special elections to fill pending vacancies, and shape who lawmakers pick to lead the chamber on Jan. 3.