Democrats have declared victory in a razor-sharp special election in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, flipping a state House seat that has been held by the Republicans for almost 30 years. Democrat Brandon Dukes is leading Republican Scott Timko by less than 100 votes in the state House's 12th District special election. Dukes has 8,434 votes (50.26 percent), while Timko received 8,346 (49.74 percent), according to unofficial election night returns.
Under Pennsylvania law, a recount is automatically triggered for a statewide race if the margin of victory is within 0.5 percent. Chantell McCurdy, the election bureau's director, said it was not immediately clear whether that applies to the special election and that officials were consulting with their legal team, The Butler Eagle reported. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro—a Democrat seen as a potential contender for the White House in 2028—celebrated the victory on Facebook, noting that President Donald Trump had won the district by 18 points in the 2024 election.
Dukes "just flipped a state House District in Butler County—a seat Trump carried by 18 points and the GOP state rep won by 30 points in 2024," Shapiro wrote. "Pennsylvanians are rising up and using their power to combat the chaos, cruelty, and corruption—and we're not slowing down. I was proud to back Brandon.
Congratulations State Representative-Elect Dukes—I look forward to getting stuff done together." The seat became vacant after former Republican state representative Stephanie Scialabba resigned earlier this year. Before her, Republican Daryl Metcalfe had held the seat since 1999. This is a developing story.
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