WHERE THINGS STAND
Republican candidates across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania had an impressive showing on election night, with its party winning in the races for auditor general, attorney general and state treasurer.
Incumbent Treasurer Stacy Garrity (R) won re-election against Democratic challenger Erin McClelland in a relatively tight race, with Garrity receiving 52.17% of the vote.
Incumbent Tim DeFoor (R) also won re-election in the race for auditor general against Temple alumnus Pennsylvania State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D), with DeFoor receiving 51.38% of the vote.
Dave Sunday (R) continued the impressive night for Republicans by winning the race for attorney general against Eugene DePasquale (D) by claiming 51.06% of the vote.
The Democrats secured a victory in the House with United States Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Philadelphia) winning re-election in the 2nd Congressional District, which represents most of Temple’s Main Campus. Boyle won with an overwhelming 81.8% of the vote.
Philadelphians cast their ballots today in the 2024 general election, including consequential races for the next United States President and consequential races for the state’s U.S. Senate seat and House seat.
Philadelphians’ ballots also included Attorney General, Auditor General and State Treasurer. Polls close at 8 p.m.
The state’s Senate and House races serve as an inflection point for issues like public safety and abortion. Incumbent U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle have campaigned on abortion access in their respective senatorial and House campaigns. Their opponents, Dave McCormick (R) and Aaron Bashir (R), are in favor of restricting the procedure.
The winning candidate in the U.S. Senate race will help determine party control in Senate, a majority currently held by Democrats.
More than 4 million registered voters in Philadelphia are Democrats, while almost 3.5 million are Republicans, according to the Pennsylvania Department of State.
The Temple News will be tracking the results of the election as they become available. Check back on this page to stay updated with the latest on all things Election Day.
STATEWIDE ELECTIONS
United States Senate
Casey and McCormick face off for a U.S. Senate seat in Pennsylvania. Casey has held the seat since 2007 and is the son of former Pennsylvania Gov. Bob Casey Sr. McCormick is a graduate of West Point and a veteran. McCormick has held jobs both in the private and public sector. He was a Deputy National Security Advisor for former President George W. Bush as well as former CEO of hedge fund Bridgewater Associates.
Attorney General
Eugene DePasquale previously served in the Pennsylvania General Assembly and two terms as the state’s Auditor General from 2013-21. As Auditor General, he uncovered $103 million dollars of misused state funds and addressed 58,000 ignored calls from the Child Abuse Hotline, WHYY reported.
Dave Sunday, who currently serves as York County’s District Attorney, has been in office since 2018. Before his tenure, he was a leader in the formation of the Group Violence Initiative and the York Regional Opiate Collaborative, which reduced crime by 30% and equipped law enforcement with Narcan.
Auditor General
Incumbent Republican Tim DeFoor said he is dedicated to ensuring Pennsylvania taxpayers are being treated fairly and with accuracy. If reelected, DeFoor’s first plan of action will be to unite the auditor general office and create career building opportunities for office members. He believes a foundation of strong leadership is crucial to conduct strong audits.
Pennsylvania State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, a North Philadelphia native and the democratic nominee, will be DeFoor’s major party opponent in the upcoming election. He received a bachelor’s degree in public communication from Temple in 2012.
As an openly gay Black man from an under-resourced neighborhood in Philadelphia, it is Kenyatta’s mission to campaign for social justice and equality. If elected, he hopes to do this by protecting voter rights and abolishing government corruption, he said.
State Treasurer
Republican Incumbent Stacy Garrity defeated former Treasurer Joe Torsella (D) in 2021 and became the first Republican to hold the position in 16 years.
Garrity has since expanded the 529 College and Career Savings Program, a program her campaign said aided 30,000 families in saving for their children’s future higher education costs.
Democratic nominee Erin McClelland spent much of her career as a counselor for mental health and substance abuse before entering politics and learning logistics and policy work. She beat the Democratic Party’s endorsed candidate, Ryan Bizzarro, in the 2024 primaries.
She has not received Gov. Josh Shapiro’s endorsement, having stated she would fight against signing school vouchers — a way for public funding to be used to pay private school tuitions — in court if elected. She also later spoke against his potential vice presidency.
CITYWIDE ELECTIONS
U.S. House District 2
Incumbent Democrat Rep. Brendan Boyle has a long history in politics. In his undergraduate years at the University of Notre Dame, he worked as a mayoral campaign coordinator, then as a fundraiser for Bob Casey for Governor.
He later became a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He has been in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2015.
Republican Aaron Bashir, a 2006 actuarial science Temple alumnus, is again running against Boyle. Bashir lost by more than 50 points in 2022, but is hoping for a more successful run this time. He emphasized the role of God in his life that has helped him on his campaign and in his life experiences, but that Temple helped him in his professional aspects.
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