Summary

Democratic and Republican voters in Pennsylvania are set to vote Tuesday in party primaries that determine nominees for U.S. House seats and statewide races heading into the November general election. The Associated Press described the contests as particularly consequential for Democrats’ effort to retake the U.S. House, with Democrats looking to flip four Republican-held districts they view as within reach.

In the U.S. House primaries, the AP said Democrats will aim to challenge four Republican incumbents in districts 1, 7, 8 and 10. It said U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (1st), Ryan Mackenzie (7th), Rob Bresnahan (8th) and Scott Perry (10th) were unopposed in their respective Republican primaries. The AP also said former Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris narrowly carried the 1st District in 2024, while former Republican President Donald Trump won the 7th, 8th and 10th districts by larger margins.

Statewide races on Tuesday’s ballot include primaries for lieutenant governor and for both chambers of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. The AP noted that half of the state Senate seats and all 203 state House seats are scheduled for election in November, and it said Democrats hold a slim majority in the state House while Republicans have an edge in the state Senate.

Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro will also appear on the ballot, and the AP said he has no primary opponents in his bid for a second term. The AP said Shapiro has spent time on the campaign trail supporting candidates for Congress, including endorsing Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie over former congressional aide Lucia Simonelli for the Democratic nomination to face Fitzpatrick in the 1st District.

In the 7th District, the AP said Shapiro backs retired firefighter and union leader Bob Brooks in a crowded four-way Democratic primary that includes military veteran and former prosecutor Ryan Crosswell. For the 10th District, the AP said Shapiro’s endorsement goes to former TV news anchor Janelle Stelson, who previously ran for the seat in 2024. In the 8th District, the AP said Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti is unopposed for the Democratic nomination to take on Bresnahan, and it said she also has Shapiro’s endorsement.

On the Republican side of the governor race, the AP said Shapiro’s opponent in November will be state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, who is unopposed in her primary. The AP said the AP will provide vote results and declare winners in contested primaries for U.S. House, lieutenant governor, state Senate and state House, along with a special election in state House District 196.

For election day logistics, the AP said polls close at 8 p.m. ET. It also provided voting turnout and administration details, including that Pennsylvania had nearly 9 million registered voters as of May 11, with registered Democrats outnumbering registered Republicans and about 1.2 million not registered with any party.

The AP said participation in Tuesday’s primaries is limited to voters registered with a political party for that party’s primary, and it said independents or unaffiliated voters may not participate in either primary. It also said about 45% of the 2024 Democratic presidential primary vote and 17% of the Republican primary vote was cast before primary day, and that as of Thursday, about 385,000 Democratic primary ballots and about 129,000 Republican primary ballots had already been cast.

Finally, the AP said vote release and counting schedules vary by county but that many counties release absentee results alongside in-person Election Day results during the night. It said that in the 2024 primary the AP first reported results at 8:01 p.m. ET, and that the last vote update of the night was at 2 a.m. ET with about 91% of total votes counted; the AP also described how Pennsylvania’s recount rules work for statewide races with narrow margins.

As Tuesday’s contests begin, the AP said there will be 168 days until the 2026 midterm elections, with the outcomes shaping the matchup possibilities across the ballot.