PA House Dispute Over Filling 2 Allegheny Co. Vacant Seats Heats Up

HARRISBURG, PA — Special elections for two state House seats in Allegheny County might not occur until May in a move that could leave Republicans in charge of the House until then - despite the fact that Democrats won the majority in the November election.

House Republican leader Bryan Cutler ordered special elections for two of the three currently vacant House seats to be held on the May 16 primary day. The elections would be for the 34th and 35th districts, which currently aren't represented because of the recent resignations of two former lawmakers.

Summer Lee of Swissvale stepped down from the 34th District seat after being elected to the U.S. House last month. Austin Davis of McKeesport relinquished the 35th District seat after being elected lieutenant governor in November.

Lee and Davis, both Democrats were re-elected to their state House seats in November. Until their seats are filled, the GOP will have a two-seat majority in the House pending the outcome of the Feb. 7 special election to fill the seat of the late Tony DeLuca, another Allegheny County Democrat, who died in October.

Both Cutler, a Lancaster County Republican, and Democratic House Leader Joanna McClinton of Philadelphia, previously had called for special elections on Feb. 7 to fill all three vacancies.

The dispute currently is in the hands of Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court judges after Cutler earlier this month filed a lawsuit contesting McClinton's authority to set the special election dates. A status conference on the litigation is scheduled for Wednesday.

Cutler contends he acted lawfully and appropriately in delaying he election dates. A spokesman for McLinton disagreed.

“Rep. Cutler has continued his campaign to disenfranchise nearly 200,000 voters in suburban Pittsburgh,” McLinton press secretary Nicole Reigelman said in a statement.

“The only reason for the GOP leader to delay the special elections in Districts 34 and 35 in Allegheny County until the May primary is to deny those voters their right to representation in Harrisburg, and to empower the House Republican Caucus to play politics and ram through extremist policies.”