Democrats will remain in control of Pennsylvania’s state House after a nail-biter in a Johnstown area district.
State Rep. Frank Burns eked out his eighth successful reelection bid, this time against Republican Amy Bradley, to preserve his party’s 102-101 majority in the lower chamber.
The pro-gun, anti-abortion Democrat represents the deep red 72nd District, which includes much of Cambria County. Political observers have anxiously watched the results unfold over the course of days after misprinted ballot sheets forced the county to extend voting hours until 10 p.m. Tuesday and required election officials to hand count many ballots.
Donald Trump is on track to win the county by about a two-thirds margin, and yet, Burns escaped Tuesday night with 51% of the vote. That’s Burns’ smallest share ever.
This narrow win allows Democrats to keep the speakership and determine the House’s voting agenda. Republicans will keep their 28-22 advantage in the state Senate, ensuring at least two more years of divided government and sluggish policymaking.
Budget negotiations could be most impacted, Penn State University professor of public policy and administration Dan Mallinson told TribLive on Wednesday, when the results were unclear.
Without a unified legislature, Republicans will not be able to circumvent Gov. Josh Shapiro’s veto with constitutional amendments, which must pass both chambers of the legislature two sessions in a row and get voter approval through referenda.
The state House win is a sorely needed silver lining for Democrats in an election where Pennsylvania voters otherwise turned their backs on the party. Kamala Harris lost the state by about two percentage points, Senator Bob Casey fell to Republican David McCormick — pending the counting of thousands of provisional and overseas ballots — and the state row office races were borderline blowouts in favor of Republicans.
“Our Democratic majority has been delivering for the people of Pennsylvania over the past two years, and voters showed up for us,” said Madeline Zann, executive director of the Pennsylvania House Democratic Campaign Committee. “This was a tough election, but our incumbents proved they have the confidence of their constituents.”
It was a clean sweep this year for state House incumbents on both sides of the aisle, aided by the large number of safe seats created by the 2022 redistricting map.
Neither Burns’ office nor the Pennsylvania House Republican Campaign Committee immediately returned requests for comment.