Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district is located in the northeastern region of the state. It encompasses all of Wayne, Pike, and Lackawanna Counties; along with portions of Luzerne and

Monroe Monroe or Monroes may refer to: People and fictional characters * Monroe (surname) * Monroe (given name) * James Monroe, 5th President of the United States * Marilyn Monroe, actress and model Places United States * Monroe, Arkansas, an unincorp ...

counties. The district had been anchored in

Bucks County Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...

from the 1940s until 2018, even as most other districts in Pennsylvania changed drastically during that time frame due to population shifts and Pennsylvania's loss of seats in the House. The

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Judiciary of Pennsylvania, Unified Judicial System. It began in 1684 as the Provincial Court, and casual references to it as ...

redrew the district in February 2018 after ruling the previous map unconstitutional due to gerrymandering. The 8th district was reassigned to the northeastern part of the state for the

2018 elections The following elections occurred in 2018. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. Africa *2018 Djiboutian parliamentary election 23 February 2018 *2018 Sierra Leonean general election 7 and 31 ...

and representation thereafter. It is geographically the successor of the former 17th district, including the ancestrally Democratic cities of

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

Wilkes-Barre Wilkes-Barre ( , alternatively or ) is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. ...

in the

Wyoming Valley The Wyoming Valley is a historic industrialized region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The region is historically notable for its influence in helping fuel the American Industrial Revolution with its many anthracite coal mines. As a metropolitan ar ...

. Portions of the new 8th district also came from the old 10th district, including the more conservative counties of Pike and Wayne. Meanwhile, the Bucks County district was renumbered as the 1st district. The district has a

Cook PVI The Cook Partisan Voting Index, abbreviated PVI or CPVI, is a measurement of how partisan a U.S. congressional district or U.S. state is. This partisanship is indicated as lean towards either the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, comp ...

of R+4; however, the Democratic incumbent of the old 17th district,

Matt Cartwright Matthew Alton Cartwright (born May 1, 1961) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2013 to 2025. The district includes a large swath of northeastern Pennsylvania, anchored by Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, ...

, won in 2018. It was one of five districts that would have voted for

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

in the 2020 presidential election had they existed in their current configuration while being won or held by a Democrat in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

. At the time it was also the most Republican-leaning district held by a member of the

Congressional Progressive Caucus The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) is a congressional caucus affiliated with the Democratic Party in the United States Congress. The CPC represents the progressive faction of the Democratic Party. " e Congressional Progressive Caucus, ...

based on the

Cook Partisan Voting Index The Cook Partisan Voting Index, abbreviated PVI or CPVI, is a measurement of how partisan a U.S. congressional district or U.S. state is. This partisanship is indicated as lean towards either the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, com ...

. The district is a mix of suburban and rural communities. It is predominantly white and middle-class. The bulk of its population is located in the ancestrally Democratic cities of Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. However, the Democrats in this district are

populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...

-leaning, different from their counterparts 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 ...

and

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 ...

. The old 17th swung from a 55–43 win for

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

to a 54–43 win for

, the first time much of this area had voted for a Republican since 1988.

Recent election results from statewide races

Composition

Lackawanna County (40) : All 40 municipalities Luzerne County (55) : Ashley, Avoca, Bear Creek Township, Bear Creek Village, Buck Township, Butler Township (part; also 9th; includes Beech Mountain Lakes), Courtdale, Dallas Township, Dennison Township,

Dupont Dupont, DuPont, Du Pont, duPont, or du Pont may refer to: People * Dupont (surname) Dupont, also spelled as DuPont, duPont, Du Pont, or du Pont is a French surname meaning "of the bridge", historically indicating that the holder of the surname re ...

Duryea Duryea may refer to: * Duryea (surname) * Duryea Motor Wagon Company, first American automobile company * Duryea, Pennsylvania, a borough in Luzerne County {{Disambiguation ...

, Edwardsville, Exeter Borough, Exeter Township, Fairview Township, Freeland,

Forty Fort Forty Fort was a stronghold built by settlers from Connecticut, on the Susquehanna River in what is now Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. Before the American Revolutionary War, both Connecticut and Pennsylvania claimed this territory, as Connecticut h ...

, Foster Township, Franklin Township, Hanover Township, Harveys Lake, Hazle Township, Hazleton, Jackson Township, Jeddo, Jenkins Township, Kingston Borough, Kingston Township, Laflin, Larksville, Laurel Run, Luzerne, Nanticoke, Newport Township (part; also 9th; includes Sheatown and Wanamie), Nuangola, Penn Lake Park,

Pittston Pittston is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city lies in the Wyoming Valley on the east side of the Susquehanna River and on the south side of the Lackawanna River. It is approximately midway between Wilkes-Barre, Pen ...

Pittston Township Pittston Township is a Township (Pennsylvania), township in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. The population was 3,179 as of the 2020 census. The township is located within the Greater Pittston region. As of 2010, the to ...

, Plains Township, Plymouth Borough, Plymouth Township, Pringle, Rice Township, Sugar Notch, Swoyersville, Warrior Run, West Pittston, West Hazleton, West Wyoming, White Haven,

, Wilkes-Barre Township, Wright Township,

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

, Yatesville Monroe County (18) : Barrett Township, Chestnuthill Township, Coolbaugh Township,

Delaware Water Gap The Delaware Water Gap is a water gap on the border of the U.S. states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania where the Delaware River cuts through a large ridge of the Appalachian Mountains. The gap makes up the southern portion of the Delaware Wa ...

, East Stroudsburg, Hamilton Township, Jackson Township, Middle Smithfield Township, Mount Pocono, Paradise Township, Pocono Township, Price Township, Ross Township (part; also 7th; includes part of Saylorsburg), Smithfield Township, Stroud Township, Stroudsburg, Tobyhanna Township, Tunkhannock Township Pike County (13) : All 13 municipalities Wayne County (28) : All 28 municipalities

List of members representing the district

The district was created in 1791.

1791–1793: one seat

District eliminated in 1793 and replaced by the .

1795–1813: one seat

District restored in 1795.

1823–1833: two seats

1833–present: one seat

Election results

References

* *
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

External links

Congressional redistricting in Pennsylvania
{{coord, 40, 20, 10, N, 75, 09, 04, W, region:US_type:city_source:kolossus-eswiki, display=title 08 Government of Bucks County, Pennsylvania Government of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Constituencies established in 1791 1791 establishments in Pennsylvania Constituencies disestablished in 1793 1793 disestablishments in Pennsylvania Constituencies established in 1795 1795 establishments in Pennsylvania