Pennsylvania held its general election on November 5, 2024, deciding 228 legislative seats and 3 statewide offices. While control of both chambers in the General Assembly remained unchanged, the Republican party secured a clean sweep of the executive row offices on the ballot.
The state legislature finished the night with its previous balance intact: a narrow Democratic House and a 28-22 Republican Senate. Meanwhile, Republicans captured the attorney general’s office from Democrats and retained both the auditor general and treasurer seats, marking the first time a single party has held all three row offices simultaneously.
Legislative Balance Holds Firm Amid Narrow Margins
Democrats successfully defended their 102-101 House majority by winning the tightest contests on the map. In Northeast Philadelphia, open House District 172 went to Sean Dougherty over Aizaz Gill by fewer than 500 votes in a race that remained uncalled until two days after polls closed. Candidates and their allies poured at least $34 million into 21 competitive legislative races between mid-May and late October.
In Cambria County’s House District 72, Rep. Frank Burns held onto his seat by under three points in a district Donald Trump had carried by 30 points, managing a contest that drew upwards of $4 million in spending. Rep. Brian Munroe similarly defended Bucks County’s House District 144 by a margin of less than three points. Shortly after the election dust settled, House Republican Leader Bryan Cutler announced he would not seek his leadership post again.
The 50-seat state Senate saw a net shift of one seat traded in opposite directions. Joe Picozzi unseated Sen. Jimmy Dillon in Philadelphia’s Senate District 5 by less than a point, marking the sole defeat of a sitting legislator in Pennsylvania. On the other side of the ledger, Rep. Patty Kim captured Dauphin County’s Senate District 15, which had been vacated by retiring Sen. John DiSanto. Across all 228 legislative matchups, exactly two seats changed party hands, one incumbent lost, and 100 races featured only a single candidate.
Republicans Sweep Statewide Row Offices
In the executive contests, York County District Attorney Dave Sunday defeated former Auditor General Eugene DePasquale by roughly five points in the race for attorney general, aided by support from a political action committee bankrolled by Jeff Yass. DePasquale conceded the race the following day.
Incumbent Auditor General Tim DeFoor turned back a challenge from Malcolm Kenyatta by a similar five-point margin. Concurrently, Treasurer Stacy Garrity secured re-election over Erin McClelland, pulling in the highest vote total ever recorded for a candidate in Pennsylvania.
With these victories, the chamber totals stand at 102 Democrats and 100 Republicans, with 1 other or vacant, in the House, and 23 Democrats to 27 Republicans in the Senate.
