For the first time in months, Pennsylvania Democrats have reason to celebrate.
Democrats claimed victory in a Lancaster County state Senate district where President Donald Trump won by 15 percentage points in November.
The Associated Press had not called the race as of 11 p.m., but Democratic candidate James Malone was ahead in unofficial totals by approximately 500 votes with 100% of precincts reporting.
The 36th Senate District was formerly represented by state Sen. Ryan Aument (R., Lancaster). Aument resigned from his seat in December, after accepting a job to be U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick’s state director.
Malone, the mayor of the small borough of East Petersburg outside Lancaster city, was on track to defeat GOP County Commissioner Josh Parsons, a staunch Trump supporter who is known in the county GOP for his political prowess.
Parsons seemed to concede late Tuesday night, posting on X “it appears we will come up a little short.”
“Tonight in Lancaster County, Pennsylvanians rejected a candidate who embraced the extremism and division coming out of DC,” said Gov. Josh Shapiro in a statement, who won the same Senate district in his 2022 gubernatorial bid by two percentage points. “In a district carried comfortably by Donald Trump just a few months ago, they chose a better way forward — an embrace of competence, commonsense, and a desire to bring people together.”
Democrats saw an opening in the district, as mail vote totals seemed to give Malone more of an advantage than usual. U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio (D., Pa.) came to Lancaster over the weekend to canvass for him, and Shapiro made a robocall to voters in the district today, a spokesperson said.
Ahead of Tuesday’s election, the state Senate race garnered the interest of conservative activist and mail voting advocate Scott Presler, and even the attention of Elon Musk.
Presler posted on X late Tuesday that he had warned Republicans that Democrats could flip the seat. ”I asked for help in Pennsylvania & no one helped us,” he added.
Democrats also won a special election outside Pittsburgh to reclaim House Democrats’ one-seat majority to again lead the chamber after a Democratic member died in January.
Democrat Dan Goughnour, a McKeesport police officer and school board member, won Tuesday’s special election to fill a vacancy in the 35th Legislative District created by the late Rep. Matt Gergely’s death earlier this year. Gergely, 45, died in January following a health emergency.
This story is developing and will be updated.
