Democrats take hope from upset win in a GOP-leaning Pennsylvania state
Senate district
[March 27, 2025]
By MARK SCOLFORO and MARC LEVY
MANHEIM, Pa. (AP) — Democrat James Andrew Malone narrowly won a special
election for a Pennsylvania state Senate seat in Republican-leaning
suburbs and farming communities, scoring an upset for a party roiled by
infighting since President Donald Trump’s victory.
Malone’s victory over Republican Josh Parsons in Tuesday night’s
election might provide a light in the darkness for Democrats who are at
each others’ throats publicly and struggling to unify around a strategy
to counter Trump.
Malone's victory came in a county that Democrats say they haven't
represented in the chamber in over a century.
Malone said in an interview Wednesday that he was helped by Trump’s
embrace of chaos and rejection of a methodical, cohesive and by-the-book
strategy of accomplishing his agenda in his first two months.
“He’s chosen to do it the way he does everything, right? Throw a brick
in the basket and see what comes out,” said Malone, a computer
application designer and mayor of tiny East Petersburg, population
4,500.
Several voters backed that up, saying they hoped to send a message about
Trump and Republican policies and politics.
Michelle McCall, a registered independent who said she has voted for
both Republicans and Democrats in the past, cast her ballot for Malone
as more of a moderate than Parsons.
She also described the Republican Party as becoming less centrist than
she would like and exhibiting “a general attitude in the party that ‘I’m
going to do whatever I want and to heck with lawfulness or the
Constitution.’”
Patty Mazzei, a loyal Democratic voter working at a clothing boutique in
touristy downtown Lititz, said she is “tired of the bullyism" under
Trump and wanted to “stick it" to Republicans.
The Associated Press called the race Wednesday after receiving
information from county officials that there were fewer ballots left to
be counted than the margin in the race. Parsons conceded Wednesday.
A Malone victory narrows GOP control of the state Senate to a 27-23 seat
advantage.
One of the top Democrats in the state Senate said Malone’s victory shows
the national party the value of talking about protecting Social Security
and health care access, amid what he sees as the chaos and pain that
Trump’s administration is sowing.
“As much anger that people have, they have anxiety too,” Sen. Vincent
Hughes of Philadelphia said. “And last night’s election sends a message
that people are going to respond.”
Pennsylvania's Republican Party chairman, Greg Rothman, said he didn't
think Trump's performance in office hurt Parsons. The prices of gas and
eggs are dropping and the federal government hasn't cut Social Security
or Medicare, he said.
[to top of second column]
|
State Senate special election winner James Andrew Malone, a
Democrat, does a television interview in East Petersburg, Pa.,
Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Scolforo)
Rather, Democrats did a better job at getting their supporters to
vote early by mail, he said, while the more traditional Republican
campaign apparently didn't work.
Republicans need to treat the loss as a “wake-up call" and more
vigorously embrace early voting, Rothman said.
Malone, 51, said he also was helped by Republican voters being
turned off by what he described as Parsons’ confrontational and
secretive style.
Parsons is a Lancaster County commissioner who has talked about
having visited the White House four times and working with Trump
staff on policy issues.
Malone's victory could be short-lived. The term only runs through
2026 and Rothman said recapturing the seat will be the GOP's biggest
target among state Senate races next year.
Matthew Elmer, who voted for Parsons, said Malone's victory
surprised him, but he expects Republicans to reassert themselves in
2026's election.
“When the real election comes around next time, the Republicans will
take the seat,” Elmer said.
Still, a Democratic flip of that district is a major achievement.
Trump won the district with 57% of the vote in November's
presidential election over former Vice President Kamala Harris. He
went on to win the battleground state of Pennsylvania by almost 2
points.
A Democrat last represented Lancaster County in the Senate in 1889,
Democrats say.
The election comes amid Democratic infighting and a torrent of
frustration and anger over Senate Democrats in Washington, led by
Sen. Chuck Schumer, ensuring the passage of a Trump-backed spending
measure that rank-and-file Democrats had opposed.
Schumer said the bill’s passage avoided a government shutdown that
would have been worse. Following the vote, internal dissension burst
into the open, with tension unusually high following the disastrous
November election in which Democrats lost control of the White House
and Congress.
___
Levy reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
