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).

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

← 2016 November 6, 2018 November 2018 →

Nominee Mary Gay Scanlon Pearl Kim Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 173,268 152,503 Percentage 52.3% 46.0%

County results Scanlon:      50–60% Kim:      40–50%      50–60%      70–80%

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 had 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

• Pearl Kim, former Deputy Attorney General of Pennsylvania and Republican nominee for Pennsylvania's 5th congressional district in 2018^[4]

Democratic

• Mary Gay Scanlon, attorney and Democratic nominee for Pennsylvania's 5th congressional district in 2018^[5]

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

← 2016 November 6, 2018 November 2018 →

Nominee Susan Wild Marty Nothstein Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 130,353 129,594 Percentage 48.5% 48.3%

County results Wild:      50–60% Nothstein:      50–60%      60–70%

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, Berks County, and Northampton County, and the entirety of Lehigh County.^[3] The district had a Cook PVI score of R+4.

Candidates

Republican nominee

• Marty Nothstein, chairman of the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners and Republican nominee for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district in 2018^[11]

Democratic nominee

• Susan Wild, former Allentown Solicitor and Democratic nominee for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district in 2018^[5]

Libertarian nominee

• Tim Silfies, business reporter for WFMZ-TV and Libertarian nominee for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district in 2018.

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