Brian Fitzpatrick Wins Re-election In 1st District

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — In the race for congress in Bucks County, incumbent Republican Brian Fitzpatrick has won re-election. He faced Democratic challenger Scott Wallace to represent Pennsylvania's 1st District. The hotly contested race was watched nationally in the Democrats' push take control of the House.

Around 11:30 p.m., multiple networks, including ABC News and NBC News, projected Fitzpatrick would win.

Here are the unofficial results, which have not yet been certified by the county:

• Scott Wallace (D) -160,098
• Brian Fitzpatrick (R) - 168,841

Wallace, a Bucks County native, is an attorney and former US Senate counsel for Judiciary and Veterans Affairs Committees. He sought to unseat Fitzpatrick, a Levittown native who was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2016.

Wallace, in a statement following the defeat, said he's still hopeful for the country's future.

"It’s easy to feel bummed out now, but we still have much to be hopeful for. We finally have a legislative body in Congress that will act as a check on the Trump administration," he said, noting the high turnout for the midterm election. "Our future looks bright so long as we stand we united."

On Election Day in Bucks County, residents across the region reported a heavy turnout with lines forming early in many polling locations.

At Newtown Middle School in Newtown, the line formed before polls even opened at 7 a.m. and it continued to grow even as the early-morning rains began falling.

By early afternoon, voting had slowed to a steady trickle, with poll workers saying they were seeing especially large turnout numbers for a midterm election.

Brittany Garvey, of Newtown, said she came out to support Fitzpatrick in the congressional race. While she said she tends to support Republicans, she was especially proud to back Fitzpatrick.

"I think he's a great guy," she said. "He does a lot of stuff at my work at Newtown Athletic Club. I was especially happy that he was on the ballot."

Steve Mirson, meanwhile, voted for Wallace. But it was another name that was on his mind on Tuesday — President Donald Trump. "I don't like the president," said Mirson, a native of Ukraine. "I came here to get rid of him, if we're being straight."

He said he didn't want Fitzpatrick, as a member of Trump's party, to return to Congress and further the aims of a president he called disgraceful. "This is not the way I like people to behave, to talk to others," Mirson said of Trump.

Sean Aldrich, also of Newtown, was a Wallace supporter as well. But he said it was hard to get excited about what he called an overly negative congressional race. "The mudslinging in that race was really bad," he said. "I don't think that race went well for either of them."

Recent polling for the Fitzpatrick-Wallace contest indicated it was a very tight race. A poll out last week by The New York Times/Sienna College shows Fitzpatrick with a statistically insignificant 1-point lead.

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Campaign debates centered around include gun safety, education funding, job creation, climate change, and more. The race has attracted nationwide attention, and is a key seat Democrats hope to flip.

Wallace is the grandson of former FDR vice president Henry Wallace and operates the family's charitable organization, Wallace Global Fund.

Fitzpatrick previously served as an FBI Supervisory Special Agent. Bucks County residents are familiar with his name; his brother Mike Fitzpatrick previously represented the county.