Harrisburg — Next week, suburban Philadelphia voters will pick between a Democratic school board member and a Republican political newbie, deciding the Pennsylvania House of Representatives' balance of power for the fourth time in a year.
Democrats controlled the House by one vote until December, when Rep. John Galloway resigned to become a magisterial district judge, splitting the house 101-101. His successor will be chosen on Feb. 13 in Bucks County north of Philadelphia.
The district is dependably Democratic and shares a county with long-time Republican strongholds that have lost influence for two decades. The county has been won by Democrats since the 1990s, and President Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump by 10% in Galloway's district, where Democrats outnumber Republicans three-to-two.
Despite positive indicators, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee is spending $50,000 to maintain its majority in the house.
“These races are really, really important and they deserve the attention and resources that meet the impact of their work,” said Heather Williams, president of the national party's committee to elect Democrats to state legislatures
At least $60 million will be spent on statehouse elections nationwide this cycle by the group. Its greatest budget will focus on removing GOP majorities in Arizona, New Hampshire, and the Pennsylvania Senate while retaining modest Democratic majorities in Minnesota and Michigan claimed in 2022.
Leslie Martes, the group's vice president of political and strategic initiatives, claimed down-ballot legislative contests in northeast Pennsylvania, Tucson, and Yuma may reverse coattail Biden's reelection effort. Her team hopes to generate enough Democrat excitement in legislative races to “push those margins” and boost presidential vote totals beyond swing states' traditional population centers, like Philadelphia and Phoenix, where Democrats are already looking to win
“Our candidates are usually not in these big cities where they're focused on turnout for the president,” Martes said, adding that “actually will help the top of the ticket cause we'll be turning out voters on the issues that voters care about this year in the state legislative role, which will also drive them in the presidential race.”
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