2018 Pennsylvania's 7th and 15th congressional district special elections

Special elections for the 7th and 15th congressional districts in Pennsylvania were held on November 6, 2018, following the resignations of Republican U.S. Representatives Pat Meehan (7th district) and Charlie Dent (15th district).

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Impact of redistricting
See also: Redistricting in Pennsylvania § Pennsylvania Supreme Court invalidates 2011 congressional districts

These were the last elections held in either district under their configurations made in 2011 by the Pennsylvania Legislature, as new districts drawn in accordance will the ruling of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in League of Women Voters v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania were in effect for the main 2018 congressional elections in November. The bulk of the old 7th became the new 5th District and the bulk of the old 15th became the new 7th District. In both cases, the two candidates on the ballot for these special elections were also on the ballot for the regular election held on the same day in their respective successor districts.

District 7
Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district special election, 2018
November 6, 2018
Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district
 
Nominee Mary Gay Scanlon Pearl Kim
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 173,268 152,503
Percentage 52.3% 46.0%
U.S. Representative before election

Pat Meehan
Republican

 Elected U.S. Representative

Mary Gay Scanlon
Democratic

Background

In January 2018, following revelation that he used taxpayers' money to settle a sexual harassment claim brought by a female staff member, Meehan announced that he would retire from Congress at the end of his current term and not seek reelection in 2018.[1] On April 27, 2018, Meehan resigned and said he would pay back the taxpayer funds used for the settlement.[2]

Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district under the 2011 configuration is located in the Delaware Valley and borders Delaware. It includes portions of Berks County, Chester County, Delaware County, Lancaster County and Montgomery County.[3] The district has a Cook PVI score of R+1.

Candidates

In Pennsylvania, primaries are not held for special congressional elections. Instead, nominees are chosen by party committee members from each of the counties represented in the district.

Republican

Democratic

Green
  • Brianna Johnston, businesswoman[6]

Libertarian
  • Sandra Salas, sex worker

General election
The 7th congressional district's boundaries from January 3, 2013 to January 2019

Results
Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district, 2018 (special)
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mary Gay Scanlon 173,268 52.27% +11.47%
Republican Pearl Kim 152,503 46.01% -13.46%
Libertarian Sandra Teresa Salas 3,177 0.96% N/A
Green Brianna Johnston 2,511 0.76% N/A
Total votes 331,459 100.0% N/A
Democratic gain from Republican

District 15
Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district special election, 2018
November 6, 2018
Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district
 
Nominee Susan Wild Marty Nothstein
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 130,353 129,594
Percentage 48.5% 48.3%
U.S. Representative before election

Charlie Dent
Republican

 Elected U.S. Representative

Susan Wild
Democratic

Background

In September 2017, Dent announced that he would retire from Congress and not seek re-election to another term in 2018.[7] In April 2018, Dent announced that he would resign in May 2018, not serving out the remainder of his term.[8][9] He resigned on May 12, 2018, leaving the seat vacant.[10]

In Pennsylvania, primaries are not held for special congressional elections. Instead, nominees are chosen by party members from each of the counties represented in the district.

Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district under the 2011 configuration is located in the Lehigh Valley and borders New Jersey. It includes portions of Dauphin County, Lebanon County and Northampton County, and the entirety of Lehigh County.[3] The district has a Cook PVI score of R+4.

Republican nominee

Democratic nominee

Libertarian nominee

General election
The 15th congressional district's boundaries from January 3, 2013 to January 2019

Results

[12]

Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district, 2018 (special)
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Susan Wild 130,353 48.54% +10.52%
Republican Marty Nothstein 129,594 48.26% -10.13%
Libertarian Tim Silfies 8,579 3.19% -0.40%
Total votes 268,526 100.0% N/A
Democratic gain from Republican

References
  1. Tamari, Jonathan (January 25, 2018). "Rep. Pat Meehan will not seek reelection after sexual harassment furor". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia, PA. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  2. Tamari, Jonathan (April 27, 2018). "Rep. Pat Meehan resigns; will pay back $39,000 used for harassment settlement". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  3. "File:Pennsylvania December 2011 Redistricting Map.jpg - Ballotpedia". Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  4. Carey, Kathleen E. (August 2, 2018). "Kim will face Scanlon in 7th District special election, too". Delaware County Daily Times.
  5. Engelkemier, Paul (May 25, 2018). "Pa. Dems Pick Scanlon and Wild for PA-7 and PA-15 Special Elections". PoliticsPA.
  6. Carey, Kathleen E. (September 9, 2018). "Green Party candidate running in special election for the 7th". Delaware County Daily Times.
  7. DeBonis, Mike. "Rep. Charlie Dent, outspoken GOP moderate, will not seek reelection". Washington Post. Retrieved September 7, 2017.
  8. GOP Congressman Charlie Dent resigning
  9. GOP Rep. Charlie Dent Resigning 'In the Coming Weeks'.
  10. Brelje, Beth (May 14, 2018). "Charlie Dent, Pat Meehan's constituents can still get help". Reading Eagle. Archived from the original on July 3, 2018. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  11. Radzievich, Nicole (July 31, 2018). "Nothstein nominated to run in special election for Dent's seat". The Morning Call.
  12. https://www.mcall.com/news/nationworld/pennsylvania/mc-nws-pa-15-congress-special-election-winner-20181115-story.html
Official campaign websites of seventh district candidates
Official campaign websites of fifteenth district candidates
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