Pennsylvania

Democrats expected to retain Pennsylvania House control after Tuesday’s special elections

Published

7 months ago

March 24, 2025

Press Room

Democrats expected to retain Pennsylvania House control after Tuesday’s special elections

Peter Hall
| Pennsylvania Capital-Star

Two special elections will be held in Allegheny and Lancaster counties to fill vacancies in the Pennsylvania legislature.
The election for the 35th Legislative District seat will determine control of the state House.
The 36th Senate District seat is expected to remain in Republican control.

Voters in Allegheny and Lancaster counties will choose lawmakers Tuesday to fill two vacancies in the state legislature.

One will take the place of a state representative who died earlier this year and the other will replace a state senator who resigned to work for U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick.

The special election for the 35th Legislative District seat, previously held by Rep. Matthey Gergely, D-Allegheny, will determine control of the state House. Democrats held a one-seat majority in the chamber before Gergley died in January after suffering a medical emergency.

The 35th District, in the Monongahela River Valley south of Pittsburgh, includes the industrial cities of Clairton, Duquesne and McKeesport, and is favored to remain in Democratic control.

Republicans won a 28-22 majority in the Senate in November, so the election for the 36th Senate District seat formerly held by Sen. Ryan Aument, R-Lancaster, is less consequential. Covering a swath of northern Lancaster County including suburbs of the city of Lancaster and rural communities, the 36th District is favored to remain in Republican control. Aument left the Senate after his reelection last year to serve as McCormick’s state director.

Pennsylvania 35th House District candidates

Democrat Dan Goughnour is a member of the McKeesport Area School Board and captain of detectives in the McKeesport Police Department. Goughnour and his wife, Lauren, live in McKeesport and have three children. He lists public safety, access to job training, strengthening public schools and reducing costs for consumers as his priorities, according to his campaign website.
Republican Charles Davis is president of the White Oak borough council where he was first elected to office in 2003 and raised two daughters. Davis said on his campaign website that he plans to take his commitment to his community to the state level and lists developing local energy sources, protecting Pennsylvania industry, reducing crime and lowering taxes among his priorities.
Libertarian Adam Kitta of White Oak works as assistant director for the Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services department. In that role, he has provided aid to victims of disaster and emergency personnel, according to the Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania. It has also provided experience coordinating with government agencies and other nonprofit organizations. His priorities are economic revitalization of the Mon Valley, increasing volunteerism and criminal justice reform.

Pennsylvania 36th Senate District Candidates

Democrat James Malone is mayor of East Petersburg and works as a senior development consultant for a business information technology firm. Malone says he is devoted to transparent, compassionate, inclusive and innovative government. His campaign website said his priorities are affordable housing, including support for first-time homeowners and property tax relief; public education; supporting first responders, and expanding social services and mental health support.
Republican Josh Parsons is the Lancaster County commissioners chairperson, a veteran U.S. Army officer and former assistant district attorney. Parson says on his website he’s a conservative who believes in small, efficient government and plans to bring his success in county government to the state level. He touts his defiance of state COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, Lancaster County’s economic recovery during the emergency and his leadership as an abortion opponent.
Libertarian Zachary Moore of Mount Joy is a geographic information system specialist with experience improving operations of utilities, planning, environmental resources, public safety and other government functions. He lists government transparency, accountability, fiscal responsibility and parental choice in education among his priorities, according to the Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania.

Peter Hall has been a journalist in Pennsylvania and New Jersey for more than 20 years, most recently covering criminal justice and legal affairs for The Morning Call in Allentown. Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

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Pennsylvania

Big Dog Reading Series: Rivers, Ridges, and Valleys: Essays on Rural Pennsylvania

Published

10 hours ago

November 3, 2025

Press Room

Big Dog Reading Series: Rivers, Ridges, and Valleys: Essays on Rural Pennsylvania

Contributors to Rivers, Ridges, and Valleys: Essays on Rural Pennsylvania will read from the collection at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 13, in the lobby of Haas Gallery on the Commonwealth University-Bloomsburg campus. The event is free and open to the public.

Ridges, Ridges, and Valleys is co-edited by CU English Professors Jerry Wemple and Anne Dyer Stuart. The book contains essays by 27 writers from around the vast interior of the Keystone State. While about two-thirds are native Pennsylvanians, others hail from places as wide-ranging as North Carolina, Utah, California, China and the Philippines. The focus of the essays varies as well. There are essays dealing with environmental issues, such as the aftermath of coal mining and the more recent hydraulic fracturing. Some essays celebrate the outdoors, whether it is backyard camping or fishing in an isolated trout stream. Others deal with family legacy and the history of people and places. The anthology was recently nominated for the Writers Conference of Northern Appalachia’s Book of the Year award. It is one of eight semifinalists.

Among the event’s participants are others with CU connections: English Professor Claire Lawrence, Music Professor Charisse Baldoria, and Matt Perakovich, a Bloomsburg graduate and adjunct faculty member. Also reading are Grant Clauser, a Bloomsburg graduate, noted poet, and New York Times senior editor, poet and professor Michael Hardin of Danville, and poet and prose writer Abby Minor of Centre County.

Copies of Rivers, Ridges, and Valleys will be on sale at the reading. It is also available at the CU-Bloomsburg University Store or from online retailers. The event is part of the Big Dog Reading Series, organized by the university’s Creative Writing program, which brings regional and nationally known poets and writers to campus to work with students and give public readings.

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Pennsylvania

Outrage sparks after Hanover Halloween parade float depicts Holocaust symbolism

Published

1 day ago

November 2, 2025

Press Room

Outrage sparks after Hanover Halloween parade float depicts Holocaust symbolism

HANOVER, Pa. (WHTM) — Local communities are voicing their concerns after photos were posted to Facebook of a Hanover Area Jaycees Halloween parade float that depicted Holocaust symbolism in Hanover Thursday night.

The float, entered by St. Joseph’s Catholic School in Hanover and towed by Metcalf Cleaning LLC, depicted a replica of an Auschwitz concentration camp gate with the phrase “Arbeit Macht Frei,” which is translated to “Work sets you free.”

The phrase is a prominent symbol of the Nazi concentration camps that killed over six million Jewish people during the Holocaust, according to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum.

The Most Reverend Timothy C. Senior, Bishop of Harrisburg, said in a statement, “The inclusion of this image—one that represents the horrific suffering and murder of millions of innocent people, including six million Jews during the Holocaust—is profoundly offensive and unacceptable. While the original, approved design for this float did not contain this imagery, it does not change the fact that this highly recognizable symbol of hate was included.”

The York Jewish Community Center, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, and the Jewish Federation of Harrisburg also released a joint statement in response to the incident:

“These acts, intentional or not, cause fear and pain for Jewish individuals and all who understand the weight of these symbols. We appreciate Bishop Senior’s acknowledgment of the harm caused and his apology on behalf of the Diocese. Recognizing the impact of such imagery is a vital step toward understanding, healing, and preventing similar incidents in the future.”
YORK JCC, JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER PHILADELPHIA, AND JEWISH FEDERATION OF HARRISBURG

Galen S. Shelly, who identified himself as the creator of the float in the comment section of the original post, wrote a lengthy statement apologizing for the incident, saying, “In that I have erred and will gladly offer this apology for not realizing there were other ways to interpret a part, especially without knowledge of the whole.”

Metcalf Cleaning LLC also apologized for pulling the float that contained the Nazi imagery and slogan, saying, “At the time, we were unaware of its meaning and significance. We recognize that we should have taken a closer look at the float prior to the parade, and we are truly sorry for that oversight.”

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Pennsylvania

Seasonable and dry Sunday, mainly dry through the work week

Published

2 days ago

November 2, 2025

Press Room

Seasonable and dry Sunday, mainly dry through the work week

Partly cloudy and chillier heading through the overnight period. Cool, calm, and crisp conditions for Sunday afternoon with highs in the low 60s. We stay dry through the majority of the work week, but better rain chances arrive later next weekend.

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