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By Mandy Taheri
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Democrats overperformed in two Pennsylvania House special elections Tuesday night in districts President Donald Trump won by wide margins in 2024.
Why It Matters
The results in the two Pennsylvania districts are in line with a recent trend of Democratic overperformance in special and state elections nationwide. Although Republicans held both districts, Democrats narrowed the margins in the 79th and 193rd.
Read More on Politics
Outside of state special elections, U.S. Senate, House and local candidates are ramping up their campaigns for the 2026 midterms. Traditionally, the party that does not hold the White House tends to perform better in the midterms. Democrats face a difficult map to take back control of the Senate, needing to hold all of their seats and flip four Republican seats. Republicans hold slim majorities in both chambers of Congress and are seeking to maintain that control in the midterms.
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What To Know
Republican Andrea Verobish won Pennsylvania’s 79th House District with 57.6 percent of the vote, or 5,330 votes, defeating Democrat Caleb McCoy, who received 42.4 percent, or 3,923 votes.
In the 193rd District, Republican Catherine Wallen received 59.75 percent of the vote, or 5,225 votes, while Democrat Todd Crawley won 40.26 percent, or 3,521 votes. The 193rd district has been represented by a Republican for nearly five decades, although its boundaries have changed in that time.
Trump won Pennsylvania’s 79th House District by about 33 points and the 193rd District by about 38 points in 2024, according to district-level estimates based on precinct data. Politics & Poll Tracker said Tuesday’s results showed an 18-point swing toward Democrats in both races.
Elsewhere in the U.S., Democrats have been flipping Republican seats, most recently with Democrat Bobbi Boudman flipping a Republican seat in the New Hampshire House earlier this month. Boudman defeated Dale Fincher 50.9 percent to 47.2 percent, receiving 2,207 votes to her opponent's 2,043, the New Hampshire Journal reported.
Earlier this month, Democrat Alex Holladay won a special election for a state legislative seat in Arkansas, adding to the number of GOP-held seats the party has flipped in special elections since President Donald Trump's second term began in January 2025.
Democrats swept in two off-cycle gubernatorial contests last year, winning the governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, and New York City voters elected democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani as mayor. However, Democrats fell short in several House special elections, even as they narrowed the GOP margin.
Democrats in six states have won several special elections that flipped Republican seats in Iowa, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Texas.
What Happens Next
Candidates across the country are beginning to gear up for party primaries as the 2026 election cycle ramps up.
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