Lehigh County News

Voters are increasingly breaking with the Republican and Democratic parties. One national poll found a record 45% of Americans consider themselves politically independent.

Democratic voters in Pennsylvania's 16th and 18th Senate districts may have contested races this spring. Meanwhile, Republican Zach Mako is seeking re-election in Pennsylvania's 183rd House District.

In counties such as Lehigh, eviction filings have reached their highest point in years, even as rental vacancy rates have fluctuated. That apparent contradiction — rising vacancy estimates alongside persistent eviction volume — is part of a broader housing dynamic playing out across the region.

The special election will be held Tuesday, Feb. 24, in the 22nd House District, which covers parts of East Allentown, Center City and a part of Salisbury Township. The debate was broadcast live on PBS39 and streamed here at LehighValleyNews.com.

Joining host Tom Shortell on this week's Political Pulse, Ryan Crosswell said his campaign is focused on two priorities: lowering costs for families and defending democratic institutions.

The early LIHEAP crisis numbers already represent a notable share of last winter’s total in the Lehigh Valley, according to data provided by the Department of Human Services.

An extreme cold warning, combined with a wind advisory also in effect, could mean wind chills as low as 20 degrees below zero for the region this weekend.

Appearing on this week's Lehigh Valley Political Pulse with host Tom Shortell, Pinsley framed his campaign around what he described as “bread and butter issues,” arguing that rising costs remain the central concern for voters, and that corporate power is to blame.

Gov. Josh Shapiro's 2026-27 budget proposal falls back on familiar proposals to regulate skill games and legalize marijuana, two flashpoints that fueled a months-long budget impasse last year.

"The IronPigs will be concluding our naming rights partnership with Coca-Cola in September of 2027, as at that time our current agreement will come to its successful completion,” IronPigs President Kurt Landes said at a joint news conference Tuesday.

PennEnvironment's 2024 “Renewables on the Rise” report ranks every state for the production of wind energy, solar power, energy storage and other metrics over the last decade, tracking growth.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump will rally supporters Tuesday at the PPL Center in Allentown. It's his second campaign visit to the Lehigh Valley this year.

After a bit of back-and-forth, Lehigh County's 2025 budget is now final. If it's followed to the letter, the County will spend $554 million next year.

Two Allentown officers alleged they faced retaliation after trying to report their colleagues to superiors.

The inaugural Lehigh Valley Nonprofit Impact Conference at Wind Creek Event Center on Wednesday attracted 300 participants designed to bring nonprofit and community leaders together.

Covering 187 acres in Salisbury and Upper Saucon townships, the sanctuary has seven different trails, and is the conservancy’s ninth nature preserve in the Lehigh Valley.

Bethany Church, citing membership declines following a change of pastors and the COVID-19 pandemic, is opting to sell one of its locations to the hospital network.

The plan, estimated to cost more than $300 million over the next decade, seeks to overhaul and upgrade aging water and wastewater infrastructure across more than a dozen Lehigh County municipalities.

Secretary of Revenue Pat Browne testified on the floor of the state senate that some protected tax information about the Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Zone could not be disclosed even to state lawmakers or publicized as otherwise required by state law.

A land developer's request of the DEP to have Lowhill Township amend its sewage plan was viewed unfavorably during a project review by a committee of the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission.

The stage is set for the transformation of the overgrown former foundry site at 300 Furnace Street into 144 apartments in four buildings.

With the zoning update set to be reviewed, legal battles over prior warehouse proposals continue