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The 1991 United States Senate special election in Pennsylvania was held on November 5, 1991, after incumbent Republican Senator
John Heinz Henry John Heinz III (October 23, 1938 – April 4, 1991) was an American businessman and politician who served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Pennsylvania from 1977 until Merion air disaster, his death in 1991. An he ...
died in a plane crash on April 4 of that year. Democrat
Harris Wofford Harris Llewellyn Wofford Jr. (April 9, 1926 – January 21, 2019) was an American attorney, civil rights activist, and Democratic Party politician who represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1991 to 1995. A noted advocate of na ...
was appointed to the seat by Governor Bob Casey, and won the general election in a landslide over Republican
Dick Thornburgh Richard Lewis Thornburgh (July 16, 1932 – December 31, 2020) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 76th United States attorney general from 1988 to 1991 under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. A ...
, a former Governor and U.S. Attorney General. Wofford became Pennsylvania's first Democratic Senator since Joseph S. Clark, Jr. left office in 1969. Major-party candidates for this election were chosen by party committees, as the vacancy had happened too late for a primary to be held. This was the first time a Democrat won this seat since
1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, events related to World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *Janu ...
.


Background


Death of Senator John Heinz

On April 4, 1991,
United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...
John Heinz Henry John Heinz III (October 23, 1938 – April 4, 1991) was an American businessman and politician who served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Pennsylvania from 1977 until Merion air disaster, his death in 1991. An he ...
was killed when his
Piper Aerostar The Piper Aerostar (formerly the Ted Smith Aerostar) is an American twin-engined propeller-driven executive or light transport aircraft, designed by Ted R. Smith. It was originally built by Ted Smith Aircraft Company, but the design was acquired ...
propeller-driven aircraft collided in mid-air with a
Bell 412 The Bell 412 is a utility helicopter of the Huey family manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It is a development of the Bell 212, with the major difference being the composite four-blade main rotor. It is a twin-turbine helicopter that has been ...
helicopter over Merion Elementary School in Lower Merion Township, a suburb northwest of
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
. All five people in both aircraft were killed. Two school children on the ground were also killed by falling debris. Governor of Pennsylvania Bob Casey memorialized Heinz as "a distinguished and dedicated son of Pennsylvania." Heinz had been re-elected to his third term in the Senate in 1988 and the term was not set to expire until 1995. Governor Casey was empowered to appoint an interim Senator to fill the vacant seat until a successor could be duly elected in November, as required by statute. In the immediate aftermath of the Senator's death, Casey declined to name any potential replacement, though it was expected Casey would pick the state's first Democratic senator since 1968. Because Heinz's death came in April, it was too late for primaries to determine the party nominees for the special election. Instead, the state party committees would determine the nominees for the special election.


Republican nomination


Candidates

*
Dick Thornburgh Richard Lewis Thornburgh (July 16, 1932 – December 31, 2020) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 76th United States attorney general from 1988 to 1991 under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. A ...
,
U.S. Attorney General The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government. The attorney general acts as the principal legal advisor to the president of the ...
and former
Governor of Pennsylvania The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...


Declined

* Stephen Freind, State Representative from Delaware County *
Teresa Heinz Teresa Heinz (born Maria Teresa Thierstein Simões-Ferreira; October 5, 1938), also known as Teresa Heinz Kerry, is a Portuguese-American businesswoman and philanthropist. Heinz is the widow of former United States Senate, U.S. Senator John Hein ...
, widow of Senator John Heinz *
Tom Ridge Thomas Joseph Ridge (born August 26, 1945) is an American politician and author who served in the Presidency of George W. Bush, George W. Bush administration as the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security from 2001 to 2003 and as the U ...
, U.S. Representative from Erie After Heinz's death, the Republican Party initially scheduled a statewide meeting on May 11 to choose their nominee, subject to the result of a series of regional caucuses. The initial candidate of choice was Heinz's widow Teresa, though she would decline on April 23, citing a desire to continue the healing process and remain committed to her family. The next leading candidate was U.S. Attorney General
Dick Thornburgh Richard Lewis Thornburgh (July 16, 1932 – December 31, 2020) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 76th United States attorney general from 1988 to 1991 under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. A ...
, and parallel to Casey's struggle to find a willing appointee, Republicans struggled to get Thornburgh into the race. By the end of April, Thornburgh had not announced his intent, and at least one regional caucus was postponed. U.S. Representative Tom Ridge announced that he would run if and only if Thornburgh declined. Thornburgh confirmed he would run on June 4, but at the behest of the White House, the meeting to officially nominate him was delayed again, from June to August, allowing Thornburgh to continue serving as attorney general for two more months.


Democratic nomination


Nominee

*
Harris Wofford Harris Llewellyn Wofford Jr. (April 9, 1926 – January 21, 2019) was an American attorney, civil rights activist, and Democratic Party politician who represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1991 to 1995. A noted advocate of na ...
, Pennsylvania Secretary of Labor and Industry


Declined appointment

*
Lee Iacocca Lido Anthony "Lee" Iacocca ( ; October 15, 1924 – July 2, 2019) was an American automobile executive who developed the Ford Mustang, Lincoln Continental Mark III, and Ford Pinto cars while at the Ford Motor Company in the 1960s, and then reviv ...
, CEO of
Chrysler FCA US, LLC, Trade name, doing business as Stellantis North America and known historically as Chrysler ( ), is one of the "Big Three (automobile manufacturers), Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn H ...
* Thomas W. Kelly, retired Lieutenant General of the United States Army Without an open popular vote for the nomination, Casey's appointment would almost certainly determine the Democratic nominee for the November election. A prominent candidate who received speculation was Lieutenant Governor
Mark Singel Mark Stephen Singel (born September 12, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 27th lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1995, alongside Governor Bob Casey. Singel served as the state's acting governor from June 14, 1993 t ...
, who had been preparing to run against
Arlen Specter Arlen Specter (February 12, 1930 – October 14, 2012) was an American lawyer, author and politician who served as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1981 to 2011. Specter was a Democrat from 1951 to 1965, then a Republican fr ...
in
1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...
. However, a problem was that Republican Senate President Robert Jubelirer, would ascend to the Lieutenant Governorship. Casey would eventually rule out a Singel appointment publicly, in addition to declining any plans to nominate himself. Casey offered the seat to
Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...
Thomas W. Kelly, who retired from active duty in April and was the public face of the popular
Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...
as head of the Pentagon's
National Military Command Center The National Military Command Center (NMCC) is a The Pentagon, Pentagon command and communications center for the National Command Authority (United States), National Command Authority (i.e., the President of the United States and the United Sta ...
. Kelly, who was born and raised in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
but no longer lived in Pennsylvania, declined. In early May, Casey also privately offered the seat to
Chrysler FCA US, LLC, Trade name, doing business as Stellantis North America and known historically as Chrysler ( ), is one of the "Big Three (automobile manufacturers), Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn H ...
executive
Lee Iacocca Lido Anthony "Lee" Iacocca ( ; October 15, 1924 – July 2, 2019) was an American automobile executive who developed the Ford Mustang, Lincoln Continental Mark III, and Ford Pinto cars while at the Ford Motor Company in the 1960s, and then reviv ...
, who had elevated his political profile by criticism of President
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
's industrial policy, with the understanding that Iacocca would immediately begin running for the special election for the remainder of Heinz's term. Iacocca, a native of
Allentown Allentown may refer to: Places * Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California * Allentown, Georgia, a city in four counties in Georgia * Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Tazewell County * Allentown, New Jersey, a boroug ...
who lived in the
Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
suburbs, would have had to relocate to Pennsylvania before November to stand for election. On May 6, Iacocca publicly declined Casey's offer of appointment, citing his family and corporate obligations. After Iacocca's public withdrawal, former mayor of
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
Bill Green III was considered the front-runner and a Casey aide confirmed that Green was under consideration. U.S. Representatives William H. Gray and
John Murtha John Patrick Murtha Jr. ( ; June 17, 1932 – February 8, 2010) was an Politics of the United States, American politician from the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Murtha, a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, re ...
, Pittsburgh lawyer Art Rooney II, and Superior Court Judge Kate Ford Elliott were also mentioned as potential appointments. After Iacocca declined Casey's offer, the Governor came under extensive criticism from Republicans for the lengthy time he took to choose an appointee and his attempts to appoint non-residents; both Republicans and Democrats agreed that his primary focus was finding the strongest political candidate to take on U.S. Attorney General
Dick Thornburgh Richard Lewis Thornburgh (July 16, 1932 – December 31, 2020) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 76th United States attorney general from 1988 to 1991 under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. A ...
, the likely Republican nominee, in November. On May 8, Casey settled on Pennsylvania Secretary of Labor and Industry
Harris Wofford Harris Llewellyn Wofford Jr. (April 9, 1926 – January 21, 2019) was an American attorney, civil rights activist, and Democratic Party politician who represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1991 to 1995. A noted advocate of na ...
as Heinz's successor. Wofford had previously served as an advisor to President
John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
and the President of
Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a ...
, as well as Casey's law partner. Casey's aides said that Wofford had been a contender since Heinz's death. Wofford was sworn in that day and immediately announced that he would be a candidate in the special election.


General election


Candidates

*
Harris Wofford Harris Llewellyn Wofford Jr. (April 9, 1926 – January 21, 2019) was an American attorney, civil rights activist, and Democratic Party politician who represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1991 to 1995. A noted advocate of na ...
, incumbent U.S. Senator and former State Secretary of Labor (Democratic) *
Dick Thornburgh Richard Lewis Thornburgh (July 16, 1932 – December 31, 2020) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 76th United States attorney general from 1988 to 1991 under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. A ...
,
U.S. Attorney General The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government. The attorney general acts as the principal legal advisor to the president of the ...
and former
Governor of Pennsylvania The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
(Republican)


Campaign

At the time of Wofford's appointment, some speculated his liberal credentials could cause problems in a state that had not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1962, but Democratic operative Paul Tully argued that his liberalism would be advantageous in the
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
suburbs, which were key to any statewide win. As little as five months before the election, Wofford's own internal polling showed him trailing Thornburgh by upwards of 40 points. Both the state and national Democratic establishment were tepid toward Wofford, feeling that Casey had missed a prime opportunity to select a top tier candidate. Wofford struggled to fundraise and had difficulty communicating his message to the voters; because he had a bureaucratic as opposed to a political background, he was long-winded and received criticism in the media. With a large lead in the polls, Thornburgh laid back to avoid mistakes, which allowed Wofford to gain traction. Despite his elite upbringing, Wofford connected well with working class voters by making healthcare access the major plank of his campaign. He also successfully derided Thornburgh for his connections to President
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
, whose popularity was steeply declining due to a recession. Thornburgh was unable to mount credible attacks against Wofford until after the Democrat had already established himself.


Results

Wofford was not only victorious in traditionally Democratic areas, such as
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
city,
Scranton Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...
, and metro
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
, but he also ran well in Republican strongholds. Wofford won three of the four suburban Philadelphia counties, which, although socially liberal, were strongly aligned with Republicans; Wofford's "roll-up-your-sleeves" campaign also allowed him to perform stronger than most Democrats in rural regions and to win several usually Republican counties with a strong labor base. As of 2024, this is the last Senate election where
Crawford County Crawford County is the name of eleven counties in the United States: * Crawford County, Arkansas * Crawford County, Georgia * Crawford County, Illinois * Crawford County, Indiana * Crawford County, Iowa * Crawford County, Kansas * Crawford County, ...
and Northumberland County voted Democratic.


Aftermath

Wofford's appointment and election increased the Democratic Senate majority to 57 seats, diminishing Republican hopes of taking back the Senate in 1992. Wofford's victory proved to be a harbinger for
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
's victory in the presidential election held a year later. Wofford's campaign was run by
Paul Begala Paul Edward Begala (born May 12, 1961) is an American political consultant and political commentator, best known as the former advisor to President Bill Clinton. Begala was a chief strategist for the 1992 Clinton-Gore campaign, which carried 33 ...
and
James Carville Chester James Carville Jr. (born October 25, 1944) is an American political consultant, author and occasional actor who has strategized for candidates for public office in the United States and in at least 23 nations abroad. A Democrat, he is a ...
, who would go on to play key roles in the Clinton campaign. Democrats did very well across the state including in Allegheny County (
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
) and
Philadelphia County Philadelphia County is the most populous of the 67 counties of Pennsylvania and the 24th-most populous county in the nation. As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 1,603,797. It is coextensive with Philadelphia, the nation's ...
(
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
). The Los Angeles Times described Wofford's victory and as the "Pennsylvania miracle" and later noted in December 1991 that many Democratic presidential candidates now wanted Carville and his partner Paul Begala to be involved in their campaigns.


See also

*
1990 United States Senate elections The 1990 United States Senate elections were held on Tuesday, November 6, 1990, with the 33 seats of Classes of United States senators, Class 2 contested in regular elections. Special elections were also held to fill vacancies. The Democratic Pa ...
*
1992 United States Senate elections The 1992 United States Senate elections, held November 3, 1992, were elections for the United States Senate. The 34 seats of Classes of United States senators, Class 3 were contested in regular elections, along with special elections to fill vaca ...


References

{{United States Senate elections
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
Pennsylvania 1991 United States Senate 1991
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
Pennsylvania Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mi ...