Overview and Live Results: Pennsylvania Primary
By 270toWin Staff
April 23, 2024, 7:37 AM ET
Pennsylvania holds its statewide primary Tuesday. This includes both presidential and downballot races. There is also a State House special election.
On this page, we highlight some of the key races. To see all results for the races we're tracking, use the link below. Polls close at 8:00 PM Eastern Time.
All Pennsylvania Primary Results
President
On each ballot, the presumptive nominee has one challenger that has withdrawn from the contest.
Democratic Primary
Pennsylvania is the 5th largest state in terms of Democratic pledged delegates. Of the 159 total, 54 are awarded based on the statewide vote, while the other 105 are allocated based on the vote in each congressional district. Each district has between three and 11 delegates, depending on how Democratic it has voted in the past.
With a 15% minimum threshold to earn delegates in each jurisdiction, Joe Biden is expected to add all of these delegates to his total.
Visit the Democratic Delegate Tracker to see full results by state and candidate.
There are 67 delegates available in the Republican primary. 16 of those are earned by the statewide popular vote winner.
There are also three delegates available in each of the state's 17 congressional districts. In this separate election, voters will select up to three names from the choices on the ballot (as opposed to voting directly for Donald Trump or Nikki Haley). These delegates are not committed to a specific candidate.
Visit the Republican Delegate Tracker to see full results by state and candidate.
Senate
These primaries are uncontested. Democratic Sen. Bob Casey is seeking a 4th term. The Republican nominee will be David McCormick, who was defeated by Mehmet Oz in the 2022 Republican primary for the state's other Senate seat, then held by retiring Republican Sen. Pat Toomey.
Attorney General
Michelle Henry is completing the term of fellow Democrat Josh Shapiro, who resigned to be sworn in as governor in January, 2023. Henry is not seeking a full term in office.
Writing for Sabato's Crystal Ball earlier this year, Louis Jacobson said that "both primaries are on track to be competitive" and that the "general election should be highly competitive."
Democratic Primary
Five Democrats are vying for the nomination. They are former Philadelphia chief public defender Keir Bradford-Grey, former Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, former Bucks County Solicitor Joe Kahn, state Rep. Jared Solomon, and Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer.
Republican Primary
York County District Attorney Dave Sunday faces off against state Rep. Craig Williams for the Republican nomination. The state party has endorsed Sunday.
U.S. House
There are three primaries of interest. All U.S. House Primary Results >
District 7 (Republican)
This is one of two toss-up districts in the state. Democrat Susan Wild is seeking a 4th full term; she is unopposed for renomination. Three Republicans are involved in a competitive primary to challenge her in November.
The adjacent 8th district is the state's other toss-up. Incumbent Democrat Matt Cartwright and Republican Rob Bresnahan Jr. are the presumptive nominees.
District 10 (Democratic)
Democrats believe this year represents their best opportunity thus far to deny Republican Scott Perry another term. They have largely coalesced behind Janelle Stelson, a former television anchor.
Stelson is one of six candidates on the primary ballot. Her main challenger appears to be Michael O'Brien, a retired Marine officer.
District 12 (Democratic)
Freshman Rep. Summer Lee is seeking a second term. The progressive Democrat faces an intraparty challenge for renomination in this safely Democratic district. Israel's war with Hamas has emerged as a major issue in the race.
State Legislature
In another example of our polarized era, Pennsylvania is currently the only state where the two major parties each control one chamber of the legislature. In this case, Republicans have a 28-22 edge in the State Senate, while Democrats hold a 102-100 margin in the State House.
Senators serve four-year staggered terms; half of the seats are up this year. All seats in the House are up for a two-year term in November. There are very few contested primaries. All State Senate Primaries > All State House Primaries >
State House District 139 (Special)
The lone State House vacancy is in District 139. It is east of Scranton in the northeastern part of the state. Republican Joseph Adams resigned for health reasons in February. Adams was elected by a 63% to 37% margin in 2022.
Upcoming Elections
In addition to the below, Republicans in New Mexico (April 27) and Montana (May 18) will hold conventions to elect delegates. The statewide primary date of June 4 is out of compliance with party rules (too close to the date of the national convention). Doing it this way will preserve each state's full delegate allotment. These delegates are expected to be unpledged.
- April 28
- April 30
- New York U.S. House District 26 Special
- Alabama State House District 27 Special GOP Primary Runoff
- May 4
- Texas State Senate District 15 Special
- Lubbock Mayor
- May 7
- May 14
- May 21
- May 23
- May 25
- Oregon Republican Presidential Convention
- May 28
- Texas Primary Runoff
