Lehigh Valley Politics and Election News

The partisan divide is still a reality when it comes to Pennsylvania's mail-in ballot system. Democrats accounted for nearly two-thirds of Pennsylvania's requests. More than 1 million people statewide requested a mail-in ballot, according to the state.

Democrats Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty, and David Wecht are each seeking a second 10-year term on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. While retention questions normally receive little attention, the potential to flip control of the high court has drawn massive political spending in the off-year election.

Republican Sharbel Koorie and Democrat Julie Zando-Dennis are set to face off for Easton's District 2 West Ward seat on City Council on Election Day.

U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Lehigh Valley, has organized a food drive while pinning the ongoing government shutdown on Senate Democrats. SNAP benefits that help feed millions of low-income Americans are hours away from expiring.

Two federal judge have ruled that the Trump administration must continue to fund the SNAP food aid program using contingency funds during the government shutdown. The administration has said it can't fund SNAP with the government shuttered.

Ahead of Election Day, Political Pulse host Tom Shortell and political scientist Chris Borick break down what to expect, including the races to keep an eye on.

State Rep. Josh Siegel has raised more than $447,000 toward his Lehigh County executive campaign since March — just short of the record Don Cunningham set in 2005. Siegel, a Democrat, has outspent Republican Roger MacLean by a nearly 10-to-1 margin this election cycle.

Democratic incumbent Zach Cole-Borghi has been charged as part of a criminal investigation into an interstate drug ring, upending the race between him and Republican Jacqueline Rivera.

State Sen. Jarrett Coleman, R-Bucks/Lehigh, was the prime sponsor of the legislation now awaiting Gov. Josh Shapiro's signature. The bill received overwhelming bipartisan support in the state House and Senate.

Lehigh County Chief Clerk of Elections Tim Benyo said off-year elections are "a little more complicated for county officials," as opposed to a presidential election. This week on Political Pulse, Benyo tells host Tom Shortell about what goes into municipal elections behind the scenes.

Lawmakers in Pennsylvania’s state House are scheduled to elect a new speaker Tuesday.

The new Congress, including Rep. Susan Wild and Senator-elect John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, will be sworn into office at noon on Jan. 3, 2023.

Incumbent Mayor Sal Panto Jr. and Easton City Council member Peter Melan said they both plan to run for the office in 2023.

Jarrett Coleman initially planned to stay on as a Parkland School Board member while simultaneously serving in the state Senate. He changed course last month. Good government advocates say such an arrangement creates the potential for conflicts of interest.

Elected leaders will jockey for control of the House for at least a few more weeks.

Pennsylvania’s top elections official is fully certifying results from the November vote.

Deposition transcripts released Wednesday by the Jan. 6 Committee revealed new details about the role that Pennsylvania Republicans played in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

The number of state lawmakers who are Black, Latino or of South Asian descent will rise as part of what House Democrats call the “most diverse class of freshmen legislators” in Pennsylvania history.

Winning candidates in Pennsylvania from governor to Congress are waiting for their victories to become official. Counties across the state with have been inundated with requests to recount the midterm ballots, delaying the ability of the state to certify the results.

Pennsylvania House Republican leader Bryan Cutler is seeking to wait until the May primary before holding special elections in two vacant districts.

U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, perhaps the most powerful politician ever from the Lehigh Valley, made his farewell address on the Senate floor Thursday afternoon.

The total cost of the governor’s race in Pennsylvania topped $100 million in this last election cycle, a staggering amount that set a new spending record in the race to snag the state’s highest office.