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Chester County Press

Local incumbents earn mid-term victories

11/17/2022 11:18AM ● By Richard Gaw

Photo by Richard L. Gaw         U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan was one of four area elected officials who were reelected to their offices following the Nov. 8 election. Houlahan defeated Republican challenger Guy Ciarrochi, earning 58 percent of the vote to win a third term.

By Richard L. Gaw

Staff Writer

Over the last several months, heightened by the polarizing climate of social media and hard line issues, the national political spotlight trained its headlights on Pennsylvania, where two crucial and high-voltage elections were settled on Nov. 8.

In a race categorized by vitriol and radically opposing views, Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman defeated his Republican opponent, celebrity television physician Dr. Mehmet Oz, to earn a seat in the U.S. Senate, a victory that helped Democrats maintain a slim majority in the upper chamber.

In a campaign where oversight of the 2020 presidential election and abortion rights took center stage, Democrat and state Attorney General Josh Shapiro defeated Republican Doug Mastriano to become the next governor of the commonwealth.

While each of these races still leave the dusty residue of political divide in their wake, mid-term elections in Chester County proved to be far less controversial and unsurprising, as all four incumbents defeated their challengers.

In unofficial election results tabulated by Chester County Voter Services and listed on Pennsylvania.totalvote.com. as of Nov. 15:

·  In the race to represent the 6th District in the U.S. House of Representatives, Democrat Chrissy Houlahan, who has served the district since 2019, defeated Republican challenger Guy Ciarrochi, earning 58 percent of the vote to win a third term.

· Campaigning to reclaim a seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives he has occupied since 2011, Republican John Lawrence defeated Democratic challenger David Cunningham by a 20 percent margin, earning 16,269 votes to Cunningham’s 11,075.

· With 55.5 percent of the vote, Democrat Christina Sappey of the 158th District will be heading back to Harrisburg for her third term in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, following her defeat of Republican challenger and former Kennett Square mayor Leon Spencer. Sappey gathered 17,092 votes to Spencer’s 13,644.

· Republican Craig Williams secured a second term as the state representative for the 160th District, narrowly defeating Democratic challenger Cathy Spahr with 52.5 percent of the vote – 18,283 to 16,533.

As of Nov. 15, Chester County Voter Services reported that voter turnout for the Nov. 8 elections saw 67.5 percent of its 382,333 registered voters cast their ballot, of which 70,592 were mail-in ballots and 187,598 were in-person votes.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email [email protected].