The 2010 congressional elections in Pennsylvania were held on November 2, 2010. Pennsylvania had nineteen seats in the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
. The election was held on the same day as many other
PA elections, and the same day as
House of Representatives elections in other states. Party primary elections were held May 18, 2010.
Overview
By district
Results of the 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania by district:
Congressional districts
District 1
Democratic incumbent
Bob Brady was the only member of the Pennsylvania delegation who ran unopposed in 2010.
Brady, a long time central figure in the
Pennsylvania Democratic Party, has never received less than 74% in a general election, and opponents have had difficult recruiting even moderately electable candidates in this majority-minority district that includes
South Philadelphia
South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south, and the Schuylkill River to the west."." ''City of Philadelphia''. Retrieved November 8, ...
and some working class suburbs in
Delaware County. No Republican has represented this district since 1949. In 2008, he earned 91% of the vote against
Mike Muhammad, a teacher who raised no outside funds. Respected for his ability to reach political deals behind the scenes, Brady has garnered an image as an effective politician, and thus has been rarely challenged by other Democrats. In 2010, Pia Varma, a young freelance writer for conservative publications attempted to gain the Republican nomination, but failed to produce enough signatures to appear on the ballot.
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District 2
Democratic incumbent
Chaka Fattah ran for reelection. He faced Republican Rick Hellberg, the CEO of a small financial firm. In 2008, Obama carried this district with 90% of the vote.
Fattah represents one of the top five most Democratic districts in the country, and has never received less than 79% of the vote in his over fifteen year House career. The district includes
North Philadelphia
North Philadelphia, nicknamed North Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is immediately north of Center City, Philadelphia, Center City. Though the full extent of the region is somewhat vague, "North Philadelphia" is regarded as ...
and several traditionally liberal suburbs in
Montgomery County. Fattah has had the consistent support of the African American community that is the base of a district that hasn't swung Republican since the 1946 elections. Despite this huge Democratic advantage, the district has small pockets of solid Republican territory, and thus Fattah has continuously received GOP opponents (although ones who were unable to raise all more than a few thousand dollars in fundraising), unlike his counterpart in the 1st District. In 2008, Fattah defeated engineer Adam Lang with 81% of the vote.
Fattah won the 2010 general election with 89.3% of the vote.
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District 3
Democratic incumbent
Kathy Dahlkemper unsuccessfully ran for re-election, losing to Republican businessman
Mike Kelly, who received 55.7% of the vote.
In 2008, McCain carried this district with 49% of the vote.
Dahlkemper faced a difficult reelection bid, in a race that considered a tossup by most political analysts. Dahlkemper became used to tight campaigns in her short political career. A political unknown prior to her 2008 campaign, Dahlkemper leveraged a moderate, blue collar image that enticed Democratic voters in a district that is pro-union, with a center-right tilt on social issues. Dahlkemper, the owner of a large landscaping business and manager of an
Erie County arboretum, came from behind to defeat Erie County Concilman Kyle Foust, the endorsed Democratic candidate. She then went on to narrowly unseat (with 52% of the vote) Congressman
Phil English
Philip Sheridan English (born June 20, 1956) is an American politician who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1995–2009 from the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonw ...
, a moderate Republican who had maintained good relations with labor, by attacking his ties to the Bush administration and for failing to follow through on a promise to retire after six terms. During her first term, Dahlkemper has served as a member of the Blue Dog Coalition of conservative Democrats, which has allowed her to keep a middle ground image. However, her vote in favor of healthcare legislation and the lack of an entrenched image in certain corners of the district left her vulnerable.
In 2010, Dahlkemper faced a primary challenge from former foreign affairs official Mel Marin, winning with 73% of the vote. Republicans focused heavily on regaining the seat, and six GOP candidates earned spots on the ballot: automobile dealer Mike Kelly, manufacturing executive Paul Huber, pharmaceutical representative Clayton Grabb, physician Steve Fisher, factory foreman Ed Franz, and accountant Martha Moore. Kelly and Huber far outraised the remaining four challengers, and they became entangled in an expensive campaign. Kelly was eventually victorious, winning 28% of the vote to Huber's 27% in the factious affair.
Kelly, a former member of the
Butler City Council, had a base of support in the heavily Republican
Butler County, while Dahlkemper was well known in Erie, the center of population for the district. Other small cities in the district, such as
Sharon
Sharon ( 'plain'), also spelled Saron, is a given name as well as a Hebrew name.
In Anglosphere, English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name, but historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In Israel, ...
and
Meadville were swing regions, with a slightly conservative tilt that balanced out strongly Democratic Erie. John McCain carried the 3rd District by a 49%-48% margin, which reflects the political balance of the area.
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Polling
District 4
Democratic incumbent
Jason Altmire ran for re-election and faced Republican attorney Keith Rothfus. In 2008, McCain carried this district with 55% of the vote.
Altmire narrowly won re-election with 50.8% of the vote.
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District 5
Republican incumbent
Glenn "G.T." Thompson successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Democrat Michael Pipe and Libertarian Vernon Etzel. In 2008, McCain carried this district with 55% of the vote.
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District 6
Republican incumbent
Jim Gerlach successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Democrat
Iraq War
The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...
veteran
Manan Trivedi. In 2008, Obama carried this district with 58% of the vote.
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District 7
Democratic incumbent
Joe Sestak retired to run for the U.S. Senate. Democratic nominee State Representative
Bryan Lentz faced Republican nominee U.S. Attorney
Pat Meehan and American Constitution Party (independent) nominee Jim Schneller.
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District 8
Democratic incumbent
Patrick Murphy unsuccessfully ran for re-election. He was defeated by Republican former U.S. Congressman
Mike Fitzpatrick
Michael Gerard Fitzpatrick (June 28, 1963 – January 6, 2020) was an American attorney and politician who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, representing from 2005 to ...
. In 2008, Obama carried this district with 54% of the vote.
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Polling
District 9
Republican incumbent
Bill Shuster successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Democrat Tom Conners and Independent Chad Clopper.
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District 10
Democratic incumbent
Chris Carney unsuccessfully ran for re-election, losing to Republican nominee U.S. Attorney
Tom Marino. In 2008, McCain carried this district with 54% of the vote.
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District 11
Democratic incumbent
Paul E. Kanjorski unsuccessfully ran for re-election, losing to Republican
Hazleton Mayor
Lou Barletta.
[Kanjorski wins easily; eyes Barletta rematch](_blank)
, The Times Leader, Wilkes-Barre, PA, Timesleader.com. Retrieved on 2010-07-12. In 2008, Obama carried this district with 57% of the vote.
Kanjorski faced
Corey O'Brien and Brian Kelly in the May 2010 Democratic primary, and won with 49.3% of the primary vote.
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District 12
Special election
General election
Democrat
Mark Critz won a May 2010 special election to replace
John Murtha, who served the district for 36 years. He faced Republican businessman
Tim Burns. Critz again defeated Burns in the regularly scheduled November general election. In 2008, McCain carried this district with 49% of the vote.
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Pennsylvania 12th District Candidates debateon ''
C-SPAN
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'', May 5, 2010 (1:00:00)
District 13
Democratic incumbent
Allyson Schwartz successfully ran for re-election. She defeated Republican Dee Adcock. Obama carried this district with 59% of the vote.
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District 14
Democratic incumbent
Mike Doyle successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Republican Melissa Haluszczak and Green Party nominee Ed Bortz. In 2008, Doyle received 91% of the vote and Obama carried this district with 70% of the vote.
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District 15
Republican incumbent
Charlie Dent successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Democrat Bethlehem Mayor
John B. Callahan and Independent Jake Towne. In 2008, Obama carried this district with 56% of the vote.
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Polling
District 16
Republican incumbent
Joe Pitts successfully ran for re-election. He again defeated Democratic nominee
Lois Herr. In 2008, McCain carried the district with 51% of the vote.
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District 17
Democratic incumbent
Tim Holden successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Republican State Senator
Dave Argall. In 2008, McCain carried this district with 51% of the vote.
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District 18
Republican incumbent
Tim Murphy successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Democrat Dan Connolly. In 2008, McCain carried this district with 55% of the vote.
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District 19
Republican incumbent
Todd Platts successfully ran for re-election. He defeated Democrat Ryan Sanders and Independence Party nominee Joshua Monighan.
In 2008, McCain carried this district with 56% of the vote.
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References
External links
Pennsylvania Secretary of State
*
Official election results
*
Official general information for voting, no candidate listsU.S. Congress Candidates for Pennsylvaniaat
Project Vote Smart
Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is an American non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected offic ...
Pennsylvania U.S. Housefrom OurCampaigns.com
Campaign contributions for U.S. Congressional races in Pennsylvaniafrom
OpenSecrets
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2010 Pennsylvania General Electiongraph of multiple polls from ''Pollster.com''
House - Pennsylvaniafrom the ''
Cook Political Report''
{{DEFAULTSORT:United States House Of Representatives Elections In Pennsylvania, 2010
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 ...
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
2010 Pennsylvania elections