With Pennsylvania’s primary election quickly approaching this Tuesday, May 19, voters across the commonwealth have the opportunity to nominate their party’s candidates for November’s midterm elections.
At the top of the ticket, Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and Republican Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity are running unopposed in their primary races and will square off against one another in the fall.
Shapiro, whose name is on a shortlist of potential presidential candidates in 2028, is running for reelection and has amassed a significant fundraising advantage over his opponent.
According to campaign finance reports, Shapiro ended the most recent filing period, ending in late March, with a $36 million advantage over Garrity when it comes to the amount of cash on hand the two sides have.
Aside from the governor’s race, all 203 Pennsylvania House seats and 25 of 50 Pennsylvania Senate seats are up for election. Democrats, who control the House with a one-seat majority, have candidates on the ballot in 181 districts, the most they’ve had in more than a decade.
There are also a handful of competitive primaries happening at the congressional level.
Here’s a look at some of the races we’re watching.
Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District
Bucks County Commissioner, and former high school teacher, Bob Harvie is running against Lucia Simonelli, a climate change and energy expert who has worked under US Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island). They are looking to challenge US House Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick this fall.
Harvie has the backing of Shapiro, the Bucks County Democratic Party, and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), while Simonelli is looking to rely on support from progressive voters to get through the primary.
Pennsylvania 3rd Congressional District
Three Democrats in Philadelphia are vying for the opportunity to replace outgoing US House Rep. Dwight Evans (D-Pa.) in the country’s most Democratic-leaning seat to have an open primary this election cycle.
State Rep. Chris Rabb (D-Philadelphia) has the backing of progressive organizations such as Justice Democrats and the Working Families Party and has earned endorsements from national figures like US House Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.).
State Sen. Sharif Street (D-Philadelphia) is the former chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party and he has the support of Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker (D), and various labor unions.
Lastly, Dr. Ala Stanford, who helped with Philadelphia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, is a first-time congressional candidate who has the support of Evans and two other US House Reps. representing Pennsylvania districts, Madeleine Dean and Chrissy Houlahan.
Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District
Four Democrats looking to challenge US House Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-Lehigh) are running against each other in the Lehigh Valley.
Candidates include Bob Brooks, a former firefighter and union leader who has the support of Shapiro and US Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Ryan Crosswell, a former corporate lawyer and lawyer at the US Department of Justice, Lamont McClure, former Northampton County executive, and Carol Obando-Derstine, who was a staffer under former US Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.).
Republicans recently formed a political action committee called the Lean Left PAC and are spending more than $1 million in the final days of the primary to sway voters against Brooks and Crosswell and support McClure.
Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District
Dauphin County Commissioner Justin Douglas is running against former WGAL news anchor Janelle Stelson in Tuesday’s primary.
Stelson, who lost to US House Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pennsylvania) by about a percentage point in 2024, is poised for a rematch against Perry with the support of Shapiro and Democrats from across the country.
