PHILADELPHIA (TNS) — In winning a governor’s seat in Virginia and delivering a too-close-to-call experience to the incumbent Democratic governor in New Jersey, Republicans are plainly energized ahead of next year’s midterm elections.
In Pennsylvania, the GOP also appeared to be on the verge of possibly sweeping all four Pennsylvania statewide judicial elections in voting that tellingly reflected a surge in Republicans turnout. From Bucks County to Erie, Republicans also won big in local elections.
All together, the election results pointed to trouble for President Joe Biden and Democrats in Washington as they prepare to defend their narrow majorities in Congress next year. Pennsylvania Democrats also took note as they look ahead to high-profile races next year for U.S. Senate and governor.
“Knowing how tough the judge races have historically been for us, the fact we swept the entire slate is a huge, huge alarm bell for Democrats,” said Matt Beynon, a Pennsylvania Republican consultant.
“It should be a siren to Democrats that they are overreaching,” he said. “This portends potentially a bloodbath next year for them.”
State Sen. Sharif Street, vice chair of the state Democratic Party, saw political headwinds from Washington.
“Our core voters expect us to be able to govern at the federal level,” said Street, of Philadelphia. “Democrats need to focus less on a failed ex-president and more on how to deliver for the people that have given us some modicum of power.”
As of Wednesday morning, Republicans had been projected to win at least three of four statewide appellate judgeships, including the marquee race for state Supreme Court. The GOP was also ahead in the race for the fourth seat.
And the judicial elections weren’t particularly close. Republican Kevin Brobson had a 5-point lead over Democrat Maria McLaughlin in the Supreme Court race, while Republican Megan Sullivan had a double-digit lead in the Superior Court election.
That’s not because Democratic voters didn’t show up: Democrats at the top of the ticket actually got more votes this year than did the party’s largely successful judicial candidates in 2017. The difference this time is that Republican turnout surged: Brobson had more than 1.3 million votes as of Wednesday morning, up from just over 1 million ballots cast for the GOP Supreme Court nominee four years ago.
In the Philadelphia suburbs, Republicans clawed back some of the local offices they lost during Donald Trump’s presidency.
Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub, a Republican and the last one to hold a row office in the Philly suburbs, cruised to reelection. The GOP also won races for sheriff and prothonotary, which Democrats had won four years ago for the first time in decades.
There were signs outside the region of more GOP momentum.
In northwestern Pennsylvania, Erie, a bellwether, voters elected a Republican county executive to the seat, which has overwhelming been held by Democrats since the 1970s. In Northampton, the Democrat incumbent held onto the county executive seat but Republicans took control of the county council.
And in southwestern Pennsylvania, where former Democratic strongholds outside Pittsburgh have been trending Republican for years, the GOP made further gains. Westmoreland County’s longtime Democratic district attorney, John Peck, had a large deficit to Republican Nicole Ziccarelli.
Democrats did hold two open seats in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Tuesday.
Thom Welby easily defeated his three opponents in the 113th state House District race in Lackawanna County. Welby is the former chief of staff to now-Sen. Marty Flynn, D-Lackawanna County. Democrats have held that House seat for 74 years.
In the contest to fill the 164th state House District seat representing a portion of Delaware County, Democrat Gina Curry, an Upper Darby School Board member, easily beat out her two opponents.
She fills a seat vacated by Democrat Margo Davidson, who resigned immediately after being charged with theft relating to misuse of campaign funds. Davidson was the first Democrat to hold that seat after 44 years of Republican control.
Both of these winners will serve terms that expire on Nov. 30, 2022.
Their victories bring the Democratic Caucus membership back up to 90 members but it still remains the minority party in the 203-seat chamber.
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