In the Lehigh Valley and nationally, Election Day could hardly have gone better for Democrats.
The party’s candidates won gubernatorial contests in New Jersey and Virginia, as well as the mayoral race in New York City.
In Pennsylvania, three Democratic state Supreme Court judges won their retention races despite a concerted Republican effort to oust them.
Locally, Democrats Josh Siegel and Tara Zrinski won their races for Lehigh and Northampton county executive, respectively. Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk handily beat his challenger, Ed Zucal, to win a second term.
Democrats held on to the seven Bethlehem City Council seats and swept Northampton County Council seats. They also swept the two county judge races on the ballot: Mark Stanziola defeated Republican Patricia Mulqueen in Lehigh County, and Jeremy Clark defeated James Fuller in Northampton County. Democrats also pulled upset wins in South Whitehall and Lower Macungie townships.
With the election seen at least partly as a referendum on the leadership of President Donald Trump’s administration, Tuesday’s results bode well for Democrats as they turn their attention to next year’s midterms.
For a complete look at results, go to themorningcall.com/results.
Here are some of the key takeaways and results from Tuesday’s election.
Voters turn out at the polls
For an off-year election, with no presidential race or major legislative races to draw crowds, turnout was strong — 40% in Northampton County with all precincts reporting and 37.8% in Lehigh, according to unofficial results.
That continues the trend of increasing turnout during municipal elections over the last decade; in 2015, voter turnout was roughly 21% in the Lehigh Valley. In 2023, it rose to 31% in Lehigh County and 33% in Northampton, data shows.
Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices retained
With the absence of a national race, attention this election turned to a contest that’s often largely ignored: retention of Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices.
Republicans and Democrats spent millions on race — the GOP in an attempt to oust three Democratic justices and force partisan elections in 2027, and Democrats to keep the judges on the bench, and therefore in the majority, for another 10 years.
Ultimately, Justices David Wecht, Christine Donohue and Kevin Dougherty prevailed in their retention race, ensuring Democrats keep their majority on the presidential battleground state’s highest court — one at the center of pivotal fights over voting rights, redistricting and elections.
The result shapes the makeup of the seven-member court through the next presidential election in 2028.
School boards will welcome new faces
Democratic candidates also had a strong showing in school board races, holding off a teachers-union-endorsed, Republican challenger in Allentown and unseating two Republican incumbents in Southern Lehigh.
In Allentown, Republican Robert Smith Jr. failed in his attempt to return to the school board. One Republican — Dianne Michels, who was cross-filed and ran on both party tickets — gained a seat, alongside Democrats Evette D’Amore, Cereta Johnson and Denzel Morris. All will be new on the board.
Nick Nicholoff, a Democrat, ran to finish out the two-year term created by the July resignation of Daysell Ramirez. Smith also challenged in that race.
In Southern Lehigh, Democrats Kimberly Jaramillo, Luis Melecio, Josh Rager and Chris Sykora defeated Republicans incumbents Stephen Maund and Christopher Wayock, and GOP newcomer Paul Deebel, for four open school board seats. Jaramillo was cross-filed and appeared on both ballots.
Jaramillo, Melecio, Rager and Sykora aligned their campaigns, identifying increased transparency and improved teacher retention as key issues. With all precincts reporting as of 11 p.m. Tuesday, the slate’s lowest vote earner was running 527 votes ahead of Maund, the best-performing Republican candidate, in unofficial tallies.
Municipal referendums pass
Voters in four Lehigh Valley municipalities also overwhelmingly passed referendums on their ballots.
In Hanover Township, Lehigh County, more than 80% of voters voted “yes” on governance changes regarding council salary and approving capital improvements. South Whitehall and Williams township voters approved open space tax referendums.
In Chapman, voters agreed to reduce the size of borough council from seven to five members, after an earlier effort failed.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
