Harrisburg, PA – “We are very proud of the Democratic candidates who ran in yesterday’s Special Elections and of the Democratic performance in their Districts” said Jim Burn, Chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. Yesterday’s Special Elections in the 87th District and the 161st District were not only a success for the Democratic Party, but a fair warning to Republicans that their platform and Presidential candidates may be alienating Pennsylvania voters.
Leanne Krueger-Braneky, the Democratic nominee of the 161st District won her race with 52.89 percent of the votes in a District where just the previous year she had received 44.07 percent of the votes. In the 87th District, one where the Democrats have not had a candidate since 2010 saw an eleven percentage point increase in Democratic performance since that year.
Burn explained, “Yesterday’s numbers show the growth in the Democratic base across the state, the message is clear that Republicans have to worry about upcoming statewide races where gerrymandering doesn’t affect the outcome of elections.” There will be three more special elections on August 11th for the 174th, 191st and 195th Districts.
