Lehigh Valley Politics and Election News

Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff played off an enthusiastic crowd at Dieruff High School to promote his wife Kamala Harris' presidential campaign.

State Rep. Ryan Mackenzie and U.S. Rep. Susan Wild tangled over Medicare, foreign affairs and Social Security during an hourlong debate Friday at WFMZ's Salisbury Township studio.

Dozens of individuals from a variety of organizing groups assembled in Allentown Thursday to rally for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, motivating the crowd to join in the fight.

Debra Biro, Melanie Heilman, Steve Lynch and Richard Morea face charges of harassment following a raucous Northampton County Republican Committee meeting involving pornographic images.

The visit will be Doug Emhoff's second to Allentown as second gentleman. He visited the region in May 2021 to promote the Biden administration's infrastructure plan.

This week on Political Pulse, Chris and Tom move away from talk of the presidential race and shift gears to focus on statehouse races.

Pennsylvania's 137th House District, based around Bethlehem Township and the Nazareth area, is one of the biggest toss-up legislative districts in the state. Democratic challenger Anna Thomas is embroiled in a rematch with Republican incumbent state Rep. Joe Emrick.

Following a Commonwealth Court ruling Friday, Pennsylvania counties cannot throw out mail-in votes over incorrect envelope dates.

The Northampton County Elections Office said it has gotten several reports of county voters receiving text messages from "AllVote.com." It's at least the second text-based scam in the Lehigh Valley that county officials are aware of.

Elected officials are taking steps to adjust development laws that some see as unfair, but they face an uphill battle. (Fourth of 5 parts)

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild said the House Ethics Committee is split in deliberations over how to handle an investigations into former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz on allegations of sexual misconduct. President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Gaetz to lead the Justice Department.

The Lehigh County Board of Elections voted 3-0 to certify 191,158 ballots Wednesday afternoon. Fights over how to count contested provisional ballots are already popping up in the neck-and-neck U.S. Senate race between Bob Casey and David McCormick.

Northampton County's elections commission voted in a multi-day hearing to count provisional ballots missing certain signatures. Their decision has been challenged in county court.

Allentown City Councilman Ed Zucal officially kicked off his campaign for mayor Tuesday at Fairgrounds Hotel.

This week on Political Pulse, Tom Shortell and Chris Borick talk about political campaign budgets and funding, comparing this year's election cycle to those past.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court order Monday is a win for David McCormick and a loss for U.S. Sen. Bob Casey as the campaigns prepare for a statewide recount and press counties for favorable ballot-counting decisions.

Allentown City Council President Cynthia Mota will face Councilman Ed Zucal and Mayor Matt Tuerk in the 2025 Democratic primary.

U.S. Rep.-elect Ryan Mackenzie said he expects the incoming Congress and Trump administration to attempt to pull back funding for some projects approved by the Biden administration. "We do want to make sure that the priorities and that the things we want to be achieving, not only as a country but in our local community, are met," he said in an interview with LehighValleyNews.com.

Mayor Matt Tuerk is seeking a second term but faces challenges from City Council President Cynthia Mota and member Ed Zucal.

Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt ordered the recount in the race between U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and David McCormick, based on results that remain unofficial from the Nov. 5 general election.

Northampton County officials will sort through nearly 4,000 provisional ballots. A significant portion of them came from the polling places serving Lehigh University and Lafayette College.

This week on Political Pulse, Tom and Chris talk about the outcomes of the general election — including Northampton County's significance in elections.