Meet the candidates running for federal office in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania voters will cast some of the country’s most consequential ballots of the 2024 presidential election. On Nov. 5, the state will be deciding the allocation of 19 votes in the Electoral College, more than any other battleground state.

The presidential election isn’t the only race on the ballot, however. Keystone State voters will also vote in congressional and statewide races. 

To help voters navigate the election, the Pennsylvania Independent has put together the following roundup of candidates running in 2024. Another three election guides that cover state candidates, voter registration, mail-in ballots, and more are available at pennsylvaniaindependent.com/tag/2024-voter-guide/.

The presidential race

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, and former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, are running to be the next president of the United States.

The election comes on the heels of Trump’s 34 felony convictions in May.

Trump’s candidacy has featured the same relentless attacks on democracy that characterized his presidency and previous campaigns, including a seemingly never-ending onslaught of lies about the 2020 election, verbal assaults on the press, disinformation about election workers, and support for violence against those with whom he disagrees. Trump continues to say the 2020 election was stolen, and he has vowed to pardon Jan. 6 rioters.

In a potential second term, Trump plans to shutter the U.S. Department of Education, create a credentialing body that would certify teachers who “embrace patriotic values and support the American Way of Life,” and cut federal funding for schools that offer what often proves to be life-saving material on race and gender. He has vowed to oversee the mass deportation of immigrants and pledged to lock up political opponents. His economic plans include corporate tax cuts that analysts say would add trillions to the national debt and benefit the country’s wealthiest Americans instead of working families.

He routinely takes credit for the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, though he waffles on future federal action on abortion.

Harris supports protecting the right to abortion, has worked to expand voting rights, backed strengthening Medicare, and recently pledged to increase support for small businesses in Pennsylvania.

On the campaign trail, Harris has stressed her support for reproductive health care, including in vitro fertilization and abortion; making child care more affordable; and economic policies aimed at helping those earning less than $400,000 annually. Those economic policies include expanding child tax credits, increasing the earned income tax credit, and financial support for first-time home buyers.

Harris is the first Black, South Asian and female vice president and would be the first woman to serve as president of the United States.

U.S. Senate

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, a three-term Democratic incumbent, and Dave McCormick, a former hedge fund executive, are facing off for the seat that Casey has held since 2007.

Casey and McCormick significantly differ on abortion, the economy and more.

Casey supports access to abortion; McCormick celebrated Roe v. Wade being overturned.

McCormick opposes the Inflation Reduction Act, which Biden signed into law and which authorized Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. Casey voted for the law.

The two candidates also disagree on Biden’s 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Casey voted for the law, which has sent billions of dollars to Pennsylvania to repair bridges and highways, provide small businesses and family homes with access to high-speed internet services, replace lead water pipes, invest in clean energy, and address pollution. McCormick opposes the law.

Casey’s vocal support for veterans’ health care has earned him the backing of Pennsylvania veterans, who praised his vote for legislation that expanded medical benefits for veterans.

U.S. Congress

Seventeen congressional seats are up for election in Pennsylvania this November. The Committee of Seventy, a Pennsylvania-based nonprofit that educates the public about government, has a rundown of each congressional race and provides candidate questionnaires at https://seventy.org/2024-voter-guide/congressional.

The League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania also provides a candidate guide and questionnaires at https://www.vote411.org/plan-your-vote.

The Pennsylvania Independent focused its congressional race reporting on three seats: the 7th Congressional District in the Lehigh Valley, the 8th Congressional District in northeastern Pennsylvania, the 10th Congressional District in south central Pennsylvania.

7th Congressional District

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, the Democratic incumbent, and state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, a Republican, are vying to represent the 7th Congressional District. The district covers all of Carbon, Lehigh and Northampton counties and part of Monroe County.

Wild supports reproductive rights, received a 100% rating from the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and co-sponsored legislation to codify the right to an abortion in federal law. Wild also voted for the Inflation Reduction Act.

Mackenzie touted his “100% pro-life voting record” in a section of his campaign website that was later removed. Mackenzie said he would “fight back against the culture of celebrating abortion and those that want to legalize it up until the moment of birth,” a common right-wing lie about Democrats’ positions on abortion.

The Republican candidate has opposed protections for workers while pushing for tax cuts for the wealthy. In 2023, he voted against a proposed constitutional amendment to guarantee workers the right to collective bargaining and against a bill to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. He also opposed legislation that would provide unemployment benefits to striking workers. House Democrats passed the bill, which remains in committee in the Republican-controlled Senate.

8th Congressional District 

U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, a Democrat, and Republican Rob Bresnahan Jr. are running to represent the 8th Congressional District. The district covers all of Wayne, Pike and Lackawanna counties and includes portions of Luzerne and Monroe counties.

Cartwright has served in the U.S. House since 2013. During his tenure in Congress, Cartwright has worked to secure resources for domestic violence victims, supported abortion rights and opposed the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Cartwright voted for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which has sent federal funds to Pennsylvania for bridges, roads, broadband infrastructure, the electric grid, and more. He also backed the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act, or PACT Act, which expanded medical benefits for former military members who were exposed to burn pit toxins while serving abroad. 

The Center for Effective Lawmaking has named Cartwright as one of the most effective lawmakers in Congress based on legislation sponsorship, how far his sponsored bills make it through the lawmaking process, and the importance of policy proposals.

Bresnahan is a wealthy venture capitalist, the founder of the firm RPB Ventures LLC, and the chief executive officer of Kuharchik Construction, an electrical contracting company founded by his grandfather. 

Bresnahan’s bid for the 8th Congressional District is his first run for political office. He has cited border security, economic growth and supporting law enforcement as his priorities.

According to reporting by the Keystone Newsroom, Bresnahan has opposed the Inflation Reduction Act, which lowered prescription drug prices for millions of seniors, capped insulin prices at $35 per month for seniors, helped Pennsylvania residents afford environmentally-friendly home upgrades, and provided funding to plug abandoned oil and gas wells in the commonwealth.

The Keystone Newsroom also reported that Bresnahan shared misinformation during his campaign about Cartwright’s 2022 election win and incorrectly blamed it on a shortage of paper ballots. In 2022, Bresnahan donated to Cartwright’s campaign.

10th Congressional District

Democrat Janelle Stelson is challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Scott Perry to represent the 10th Congressional District, which covers Dauphin County and parts of Cumberland County and York County.

Stelson, a longtime WGAL-TV reporter in Harrisburg, has said the overturning of Roe v. Wade and Perry’s anti-abortion views inspired her to run for office.

On her campaign website, Stelson says protecting reproductive rights, lowering costs for families, investing in health care and job creation, and supporting veterans are her top priorities.

Perry is a former leader of the far-right House Freedom Caucus and played a central role in Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

Perry is anti-abortion, repeatedly voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and has a long record of promoting bigotry and conspiracy theories. In June, the Jewish Insider reported that Perry’s campaign had posted and then deleted an antisemitic meme on its Facebook page.