HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) 鈥 Democrats retained their slim majority in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Tuesday after voters elected a former school board member to represent them in a Philadelphia suburb that has been trending more to the left.
Jim Prokopiak鈥檚 election to the Bucks County seat will give Democrats a 102-100 majority in the House, which they have sought to defend in four special elections in the past year. A Republican lawmaker鈥檚 shifted the power back to Democrats, and Prokopiak鈥檚 win kept it in place.
He defeated Republican challenger Candace Cabanas and will replace former state Rep. John Galloway, who resigned to serve as a magisterial judge. Cabanas has said previously she plans to run again during the general election.
鈥淲hat I heard from voters is that Bucks County residents need help supporting their families, want control over their own bodies, and ensure they have the ability to chart their own paths in life,鈥 Prokopiak said in a statement. 鈥淚鈥檓 committed to taking my conversations with voters to Harrisburg and making their dreams a reality.鈥
While campaigning, Prokopiak, 49, said his goals as a lawmaker aligned with the party鈥檚 larger ambitions since they retook the chamber 鈥 more money for K-12 education, preserving access to abortions and a higher minimum wage.
鈥淣o one can afford to live on the federal minimum wage in this area,鈥 he said. 鈥淚f we鈥檙e going to be talking about good-paying jobs and creating life-sustaining jobs, the first thing we have to do is raise the minimum wage because it鈥檚 clear that is not sustaining anybody.鈥
Democrats have kept all six seats that have gone up for special elections in the past year, in mostly reliably Democratic districts. Prokopiak will represent a seat that has favorably elected Democrats in past election cycles.
Galloway鈥檚 seat has trended Democratic, and Republicans have slowly been losing their grip on the county as a whole.
The race drew national attention from the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which spent $50,000 to protect the party鈥檚 majority in the chamber.
It was a first step for the committee, which has said it is planning to spend at least $60 million on statehouse races nationally this cycle, the group鈥檚 largest-ever budget. It will feature special emphasis on erasing GOP majorities in Arizona and New Hampshire and in the Pennsylvania Senate while holding small Democratic majorities claimed in 2022 in Minnesota and Michigan.
鈥淭his victory is a promising sign for Democrats up and down the ballot this year 鈥 it鈥檚 clear that momentum is on our side,鈥 Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Heather Williams said in a statement, adding that their focus will be on defending the House majority and flipping the state Senate.
Democrats in Pennsylvania have used their newfound power this year to advance a number of the caucus鈥 priorities, and they have a philosophical ally in the governor鈥檚 office with Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro. The Legislature remains politically divided with a firm Republican majority in the Senate.
鈥淥ver the last year I think, since the Democrats have been in the majority, they鈥檝e pushed legislation that has helped the middle class,鈥 Prokopiak said previously. 鈥淚 want to do that.鈥
