Arlen Specter was an American lawyer, author and politician who served as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1981 to 2011. Specter was a Democrat from 1951 to 1965, then a Republican from 1965 until 2009, when he switched back to the Democratic Party. First elected in 1980, he was the longest-serving senator from Pennsylvania, having represented the state for 30 years.
Joseph Ambrose Sestak Jr. is an American politician and retired U.S. Navy officer. He represented Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011 and was the Democratic nominee for the United States Senate in 2010. A three-star admiral, he was the highest-ranking military official ever elected to the United States Congress at the time of his election. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in the 2020 election, launching his campaign on June 23, 2019 and ending it on December 1, 2019, subsequently endorsing Amy Klobuchar.
The Pennsylvania Republican Party (PAGOP) is the affiliate of the Republican Party in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is headquartered in Harrisburg. Its chair is Lawrence Tabas and is the second largest political party in the state behind the Pennsylvania Democratic Party.
Pennsylvania is generally considered a swing state that leans slightly left. Throughout its entire history, it voted for the nationwide loser on only 10 occasions, meaning it has voted for the national winner 83% of the time as of 2024. Although, it generally supported Republicans between the Civil War and New Deal eras, as it voted Republican in every election between 1860 and 1932, except for 1912, when the Republican vote was split. Even then, the state's strong Republican ties meant that it backed Republican-turned-Progressive Theodore Roosevelt. The state backed a Democrat in 1936 for the first time since 1856. Pennsylvania generally leaned Democratic since the 1990s, as it backed the Democratic presidential candidate in every election since 1992 except in 2016 and 2024, when it was won by Republican candidate Donald Trump.
The 2006 United States House elections in Pennsylvania was an election for Pennsylvania's delegation to the United States House of Representatives, which occurred as part of the general election of the House of Representatives on November 7, 2006.
The 2008 congressional elections in Pennsylvania was held on November 4, 2008, to determine who will represent the state of Pennsylvania in the United States House of Representatives. Pennsylvania has 19 seats in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected will serve in the 111th Congress from January 4, 2009, until January 3, 2011. The election coincides with the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
Patrick Leo Meehan is a former American Republican Party politician and federal prosecutor from Pennsylvania who represented parts of Delaware, Chester, Montgomery, Berks, and Lancaster counties in the United States House of Representatives from 2011 until his resignation in 2018. He succeeded Democrat Joe Sestak, who ran unsuccessfully for the United States Senate.
The 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for reelection to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat Toomey then won the seat.
The 2010 congressional elections in Pennsylvania were held on November 2, 2010. Pennsylvania had nineteen seats in the United States House of Representatives. The election was held on the same day as many other PA elections, and the same day as House of Representatives elections in other states. Party primary elections were held May 18, 2010.
The Democratic Party primary for the 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on May 18, 2010, when Congressman Joe Sestak defeated incumbent Arlen Specter, which led to the end of Specter's five-term Senatorial career. Just before the start of the primary campaign, after serving in the Senate as a Republican for 29 years, Specter had switched to the Democratic Party in anticipation of a difficult primary challenge by Pat Toomey; Toomey ultimately defeated Sestak in the general election. Political observers and journalists described the race between Specter and Sestak as one of the bitterest and most-watched of all the 2010 primary elections.
The 2012 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on November 6, 2012, alongside a presidential election, other elections to the United States Senate in other states, as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Bob Casey, Jr. ran for and won re-election to a second term, defeating Republican nominee Tom Smith, and Libertarian nominee Rayburn Smith.
The 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, to elect the 18 U.S. representatives from the state of Pennsylvania, a loss of one seat following the 2010 United States census. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate. Primary elections were held Tuesday, April 24.
The 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania were held on Tuesday, November 4, 2014, to elect the 18 U.S. representatives from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, one from each of the state's 18 congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the United States Senate and House of Representatives and various state and local elections, including the Governor of Pennsylvania and Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania.
The 2016 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 8, 2016, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in numerous other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. The primaries were held on April 26. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Pat Toomey was reelected to a second term in a close race, defeating Democratic nominee Katie McGinty and Libertarian Party nominee Edward Clifford. With a margin of 1.43%, this election was the second-closest race of the 2016 Senate election cycle, behind only the election in New Hampshire.
The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania were held on November 8, 2016, to elect the 18 U.S. representatives from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, one from each of the state's 18 congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections. The primaries were held on April 26.
Guy Lorin Reschenthaler is an American politician, attorney, judge, and U.S. Navy veteran. A Republican, he is the U.S. representative for Pennsylvania's 14th congressional district and was previously a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate, representing the 37th district. He served as a district judge, and in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG) during the Iraq War. He is serving as the Republican Chief Deputy Whip in the 118th Congress.
The 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania were held on November 6, 2018, to elect the 18 U.S. representatives from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, one from each of the state's 18 congressional districts.
The 2022 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania. Democratic state attorney general Josh Shapiro defeated Republican state senator Doug Mastriano to win his first term in office. Shapiro succeeded Democratic incumbent Tom Wolf, who was term limited.
The 2024 Pennsylvania Attorney General election was held on November 5, 2024, to elect the attorney general of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Republican York County district attorney Dave Sunday defeated former auditor general Eugene DePasquale in the general election, becoming the first Republican attorney general since Tom Corbett. This was the only attorney general seat to change parties in 2024.
The 2024 Pennsylvania elections took place on November 5, 2024. On that date, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania held elections for the following offices: President of the United States, U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, Pennsylvania State Senate, Pennsylvania House of Representatives, and various others.
