Which candidates won? Erie County results for the 2024 election's final day
Erie County voters cast their ballots Tuesday in state races and the hotly watched presidential race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. Polls for the 2024 General Election in Pennsylvania were open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Follow GoErie.com throughout the week for more local and state analysis and results from Election Day.
Looking for election results? U.S. House results are here. U.S. Senate results are here.
Trump takes Erie County
Former President Donald Trump appears to have won bellwether Erie County, which has voted in lockstep with the rest of Pennsylvania since 1992.
-Matthew Rink
Bizzarro beats Goring to keep 3rd District state House seat
Voters have given State Rep. Ryan Bizzarro another two years in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
-Kevin Flowers
Dan Laughlin wins 3rd term as 49th Dist. state senator
State Sen. Dan Laughlin will hold onto his seat in the Pennsylvania State Senate.
-A.J. Rao
Banta elected to second State House term
Jake Banta is heading back to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
The Republican incumbent won a decisive victory in Tuesday's general election, defeating Democratic challenger Joe Cancilla, 22,340 to 10,576 votes, a difference of 11,764 votes, according to unofficial vote totals.
-A.J. Rao
Study commission referendum passes in Millcreek Township
There will be a government study commission in Millcreek Township. The referendum creating the commission was approved by 17,501 votes to 12,368, according to unofficial election results. Serving on the commission will be Sue Weber, Donna Shaw, Bill Schaaf, Art Oligeri, John DiPlacido, James DeDad and Paul Vojtek. The seven candidates took the most votes in a field of 11 candidates.
-Valerie Myers
Pennsylvania tallies mail-in ballots in presidential race
Forty-eight counties in Pennsylvania received a combined total of 1.4 million mail-in ballots in the presidential election, according to data posted by Pennsylvania officials shortly after midnight.
Erie County accounted for about 36,000 of those ballots.
Secretary of State Al Schmidt said 65 Pennsylvania counties were required to report mail-in ballot totals at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday as a condition of receiving state grant funding for elections.
“The goal of these reports is to identify the total universe of mail ballots returned to the county to help mitigate against misinformation about found ballots that can spread while ballots are still being counted,” Schmidt told reporters early Wednesday morning.
Schmidt said his office would continue to work with the counties that had not yet shared their mail-in ballot totals in compliance with the grant program.
― Bethany Rodgers
Erie County mail-in and Election Day ballots will be counted tonight
Erie County Clerk Karen Chillcott says all of the mail-in ballots and Election Day ballots will be counted tonight, with the exception of about 230 damaged ballots (ballots that cannot be fed into the scanner) and hundreds of provisional ballots. It took multiple days in 2020 to count the vote, but new technology, including ballot sorters and envelope openers have sped up the process.
-Matthew Rink
Brad Roae wins 10th term as state representative
Roae, a Republican, of East Mead Township, Crawford County, represents Albion and Cranesville boroughs and Springfield, Conneaut and Elk Creek townships in Erie County as well as Meadville, Conneaut Lake, Linesville and Conneautville in Crawford County.
- Valerie Myers
Scott Hutchinson re-elected to fourth term
The 21st District was redrawn in 2022 to include Corry, Elgin Borough and Concord and Wayne townships in Erie County. Those southeastern Erie County voters previously were part of the 50th District, represented by Republican Michele Brooks, of Greenville.
-Valerie Myers
Harkins wins re-election bid
Pat Harkins has been re-elected as 1st District state representative. Harkins was unopposed in Tuesday's general election. He also was unopposed for his party's nomination in this year's primary election.
Yes votes continue to lead on Millcreek study referendum
With 72% of Millcreek precincts reporting, there are 13,706 yes votes to form a government study commission, compared to 9,697 no votes.
-Valerie Myers
Laughlin takes lead over Wertz
Republican incumbent Dan Laughlin has taken the lead over Democratic challenger Jim Wertz by nearly 4,000 votes in the race for the 49th senatorial district seat, according to 68.53% of precincts reporting so far. Laughlin has 50,368 votes to Wertz’s 46,703 votes.
-A.J. Rao
Merski continues to lead over Strupczewski
Democrat Bob Merski appears to be on his way to a fourth term in the state House. Merski has a 2-1 lead over Republican Matt Strupczewski in voting for 2nd Dist. state representative, 14,383 votes to 7,604. That's now with almost 65% of 2nd Dist. precincts reporting.
-Valerie Myers
Banta widens lead over Cancilla
Republican incumbent Jake Banta widens lead over Democratic challenger Joe Cancilla 15,262 to 8,177 votes in the race for the 4th Legislative District in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, according to 65.71% of precincts reporting so far.
-A.J. Rao
Mike Kelly wins re-election bid
Mike Kelly easily won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives for an eighth two-year term. According to unofficial vote totals, the Republican incumbent beat Democratic challenger Preston Nouri, a 25-year-old first-time political candidate from Fairview, for Pennsylvania's 16th Congressional District.
Bizzarro leads Goring in 3rd District House race
Democratic incumbent State Rep. Ryan Bizzarro has a comfortable 62% to 38% lead over Micah Goring, his Republican challenger for the 3rd District seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, with 40% of the vote counted. The district includes Millcreek and Fairview townships.
-Kevin Flowers
Yes votes ahead in Millcreek study referendum question
With 36% of Millcreek precincts reporting, there are 9,552 yes votes to form a Millcreek Township government study commission and 6,757 no votes. If the referendum passes, the top seven vote-getters will be elected to serve on the commission. Sue Weber still leads the voting for commission members, with 9,265 votes.
-Valerie Myers
Banta takes lead over Cancilla
Republican incumbent Jake Banta has taken the lead over Democrat challenger Joe Cancilla 7,208 to 5,082 votes in the race for the 4th Legislative District in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, according to 17.14% of precincts reporting so far.
-A.J. Rao
Wertz and Laughlin in tight race
Democratic challenger Jim Wertz holds a narrow lead of 1,855 votes over Republican incumbent Dan Laughlin in the race for the 49th senatorial district seat, according to 33.57% of precincts reporting so far. Wertz has 33,393 votes to Laughlin's 31,538 votes.
-A.J. Rao
Merski, Roae maintain comfortable leads
State Rep. Bob Merski is maintaining a healthy lead in the 2nd Dist. race with Matt Strupczewski with 41% of precincts reporting. Merski, a Democrat, has 10,948 votes to 5,145 for his Republican challenger.
Incumbent Republican Brad Roae is leading Democrat Michael Walker in Erie County voting for the 6th Dist. state House seat. Roae represents southwestern Erie County and larger portions of Crawford County. Locally, he's leading with 63% of the vote to 37% for Walker. That's with 40% of Erie County precincts reporting.
-Valerie Myers
Pa. polling site bomb threats were emailed
Bomb threats to multiple polling places in Pennsylvania were sent via email, according to Secretary of State Al Schmidt.
Officials are not yet certain who was behind the threats, but during a Tuesday evening news briefing, Schmidt emphasized that they weren’t credible.
“Threats are intended to intimidate and coerce,” he said. “Our election officials and our voters are not going to be intimidated.”
Clearfield and Chester counties were among those targeted, along with York County, where officials reported receiving a threat to the East York elections and voter registration office. Voting and election work went on uninterrupted, and a sheriff’s office canine unit found there was no danger to employees or the public, according to a county statement.
The county said the threats seemed similar to others reported around Pennsylvania and in other states.
Bomb threats have also surfaced in Georgia and Arizona. According to the FBI, threats that appear to originate from Russian email domains have been made against polling sites around the country, although the agency did not specify which states were affected.
-Bethany Rodgers
Thompson easily wins
Republican U.S. House incumbent Glenn Thompson easily retained the 15th Congressional District, beating Democrat Zach Womer with nearly 70% of the vote reported. Thompson was ahead 198,471 votes to 75,157.
2024 PA General Election Results - U.S. House District 15
In early results, Millcreek government study vote leans to yes
Also in early tallies, there are 6,630 yes votes to 4,760 no votes on the Millcreek Township government study commission referendum. That's with 16% of Millcreek precincts reporting. Former township Supervisor Sue Weber helped lead the charge for the study commission and so far is leading voting for commission members, with 6,717.
-Valerie Myers
Cancilla holds early lead over Banta
Democrat challenger Joe Cancilla holds an early lead over Republican incumbent Jake Banta 3,751 to 3,209 votes in the race for the 4th Legislative District in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, according to 2.86% of precincts reporting so far.
-A.J. Rao
Trump builds on 2020 totals in Harborcreek Township
In Harborcreek Township's District 6 and District 7, the candidates are running very closely to 2020 totals. However, Trump, who easily won the districts last time, has added 34 votes to his 2020 combined totals for the districts. Harris, however, has added 45. Erie County was decided by less than 1,500 votes in 2020.
-Matthew Rink
Wertz ahead of Laughlin in state Senate race early
Democrat challenger Jim Wertz leads Republican incumbent Dan Laughlin 24,717 to 17,545 votes in the race for the 49th senatorial district seat, according to 13.99% of precincts reporting so far.
-A.J. Rao
Early results for Erie County in: Harris leads Trump
With 13.42% of precincts reporting, Kamala Harris leads Donald Trump 27,624 votes to 15,345, according to the Erie County Elections Office.
In the U.S. Senate race, Democrat Bob Casey leads Dave McCormick 27,704 votes to 14,682.
In the U.S. House, 16th District, Democrat Preston Nouri has 26,148 votes to incumbent Mike Kelly's 16,269.
Erie County Councilman Chris Drexel said the county is reporting both mail-in ballots and Election Day ballots at the same time.
-Matthew Rink
Merski leads early
In first Erie County election reporting, incumbent Democrat Bob Merski leads Republican challenger Matt Strupczewski by 8,202 votes to 3,238 in the race for 2nd Dist. state representative. That's with 17.65% of precincts accounted for so far.
-Valerie Myers
Watch it: Officials speak of 'free, secure' election and isolated issues
Gov. Josh Shapiro and Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt spoke with reporters after polling locations closed across the state on Tuesday night.
'No credible threat' from bomb threats in Pennsylvania counties
Bomb threats were called into multiple polling places across Pennsylvania Tuesday evening, but so far authorities have determined “there is no credible threat to the public,” Gov. Josh Shapiro said.
State and local authorities and the FBI are investigating the threats, Shapiro told reporters during a news conference.
A judge granted an emergency request to extend voting by an hour to 9 p.m. at the Clearfield County administrative building, which received one of the threats, according to state court officials.
Chester County Commissioner Josh Maxwell posted on X that the county’s government services center was evacuated because of a threat. He said voters at the building were rerouted to nearby polling places, where they were able to cast provisional ballots.
-Bethany Rodgers
Two precincts favor Trump in Harborcreek Township
The Times-News was on hand as poll workers at the Harborcreek Township 6th and 7th Districts combined sites posted presidential vote results at the township municipal building on Buffalo Road.
Donald Trump led Kamala Harris 461 votes to 288 in District 6, while Trump also had the advantage at the District 7 precinct, 661 votes to 363.
Mail-in ballots return rate at 82% early Tuesday evening
As of Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., Democrats have returned 20,848 mail-in ballots out of 24,760 mail ballot applications. Republicans have returned 10,239 mail-in ballots out of 13,040 mail ballot applications. Erie County Clerk Karen Chillcott is reporting an 82% return rate on mail-in ballots, a figure she described as "amazing," given the delays caused by the county's printing vendor.
-A.J. Rao
No election-related challenges in Erie County so far
While other counties in Pennsylvania are dealing with election-related court challenges today, Erie County has been quiet. As of 6 p.m., "no formal complaints" requiring judicial action had been filed in the Erie County Court of Common Pleas, said Judge John J. Trucilla, the duty judge for Election Day. The big ruling for the county came on Friday, when Judge David Ridge ordered a resolution of the issues involving voters who had yet to receive mail-in ballots due to problems officials traced to a third-party vendor and the U.S. Postal Service.
- Ed Palattella
Pennsylvania stands apart among swing states
Pennsylvania is one of seven swing — or battleground — states in this year's election. Candidates need 270 electoral votes to win the presidency, and none of the swing states offer more than Pennsylvania’s 19 electoral votes. What is a swing state? Here are the seven battleground states.
- Damon C. Williams, Clare Mulroy
Delve into the voters guide for Pennsylvania residents
From the White House to the state House of Representatives, Pennsylvanians have some hefty decisions to make in this year's election. Check the voter guide for a look at some of the most pivotal races on the ballot.
When will election results be available in Pennsylvania?
If this year is anything like the last general election, it could take days for elections officials to tally all of the votes across the country. In 2020, the Associated Press didn't call the race for President Joe Biden until the Saturday morning after Election Day.
-Lacey Latch, Amanda Wallace, Maria Francis
In this video, Al Schmidt, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of State, explains why many results are not expected to be known on Election Night.
What are you seeing at the polls in Pennsylvania?
On Election Day, Pennsylvania voters will cast ballots at thousands of polling places across the commonwealth.
Journalists with the USA TODAY Network can't visit all of these sites in person, of course, but we'd value your help understanding what's happening Nov. 5. So if you experience or witness something you think is newsworthy related to the Pennsylvania elections, please consider letting us know by filling out the form below.
We probably won't be able to follow up on every tip, but feel free to indicate if you'd be willing to speak with a reporter for our coverage of this critical election.
Fact check: The Amish vote in Pennsylvania
Social media is rife with claims of a massive turnout of first-time Amish voters in Lancaster, the heart of Pennsylvania's plain community.
As USA Today has reported, the figure suggested, 180,000, is impossibly high, according to experts and population estimates. The estimated Amish population in Pennsylvania is about 93,000, and the estimated Amish population in the Lancaster County area is about 44,000. The number of eligible Amish voters in Lancaster County in total is about 17,000.
USA TODAY also notes the posts mention voter mobilization efforts by Scott Presler, founder of Early Vote Action, an organization that focuses on registering and getting Republicans to the polls. Presler himself addressed the claim in an X post, saying the 180,000 figure is not "accurate" given the total Amish population in Pennsylvania.
-Andre Byik
Fact check: No, there aren't 180,000 new Amish voters in Pennsylvania
Lines stretch through gym at Millcreek polling place
There was a long line at the First Alliance Church gym on Zimmerly Road before noon Tuesday. Millcreek Township's 22nd District site had 500 voters cast a ballot by 11:30 a.m.
-Tom Reisenweber
Wesleyville polls see steady stream of voters
A steady stream of voters visited Wesleyville Borough's 1st District site — Wesleyville Baptist Church at 3509 Buffalo Road — on Tuesday morning, poll workers said. By 11:30 a.m., 240 people had cast ballots.
-Tony Battaglia
Line steady outside Summit Township polls
There's been a steady line all morning outside the Summit Township 1st District polls at Perry HI-Way Hose Company on Oliver Road, and there is about a 40-minute wait to vote. Poll workers are directing voters relying on walkers and canes to the head of the line.
- Valerie Myers
Hour-plus wait at Crawford County polling site
Cars filled the parking lot outside the township building in Crawford County's Hayfield Township shortly after 9 a.m. A couple of dozen more cars were parked along the edge of Townhouse Road as township residents waited more than an hour to vote Tuesday.
Mike Marley, 75, a retired school teacher who works part time at Allegheny College, was happy to be part of the moment and thrilled to see so many of his fellow township residents turn out to vote.
Marley said he voted for Kamala Harris, but has no quarrel with those who made a different choice.
"Donald Trump might not be the best presidential candidate, but by wearing who is on his sleeve he raises our level of consciousness."
Trump, he said, "makes us aware of who we are becoming. And I am grateful for that."
- Jim Martin
Big voter turnout trends Tuesday morning in Erie
At the Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State St., the District 2 polling site in Erie’s 5th Ward, 129 registered voters had cast ballots in person as of 10:15 a.m., according to an election official there. That is about 13% of the district’s roughly 1,000 registered voters.
The polling site had a line of 10 to 15 people when it opened at 7 a.m. Tuesday, said the election official, who added that in many elections, the polling site sees less than 200 people vote in person throughout an entire day.
-Kevin Flowers
Erie's 6th Ward, early report
At Erie High School, the polling place for District 4 in Erie's 6th Ward, an election official said 109 in-person ballots had been cast as of 9:35 a.m. That's just shy of 13% of the district's 842 registered voters.
-Matt Martin
How many mail ballots have been returned in Erie County?
A total of 34,586 mail ballots, or 82% of all mail ballots requested in Erie County, were returned before 7 a.m. today, according to Erie County Clerk Karen Chillcott.
-A.J. Rao
Mail-in ballots: Comparison today with 2020
Through Nov. 2, 2020, the night before the 2020 presidential election, the Erie County Voter Registration Office had received 48,746 completed mail-in ballots out of 57,869 sent, or about 84%, Erie Times-News records show. As of Monday evening, the county had received about 78.5% of the ballots it had sent out, according reporter AJ Rao.
Keep in mind, there are some ballots, including 600 ballots that will be set aside due to ElectionIQ's error of sending 300 duplicate ballots to some voters. Those ballots won't appear as having been returned in the county's system because the system has been programmed to kick out those ballots for a manual count. But if you add those in, that shifts the percent of returned ballots 1.5% points.
-Matthew Rink
Voters lined up in Millcreek Township as polls open
A line of voters wrapped halfway around the Belle Valley Social Hall, 1514 Norcross Road, when voting started at 7 a.m. the line was smaller but still stretched outside the building at 9:30 as people voted from Millcreek Township’s 1st and 21st districts. The judges of elections said there have been no incidents except the ballot scanner for the 21st District wasn’t working properly. If it can’t be fixed, the paper ballots will be safely secured until they can be scanned.
-David Bruce
Big early numbers in Erie at 5th Ward site
There were 115 people who had voted at Trinity Lutheran Church, 38th and State, as of 9:02 a.m.. They usually don’t see that many voters until mid-afternoon, poll workers said. There was a line early but no line at 9 a.m.
-David Bruce
Steady turnout in North East Boro
As of 8:25 a.m., 131 people had voted at the North East Senior Center, one of two polling places in the borough. Foot traffic was steady at 7:40 a.m. and again at 8:25 a.m., but lines did not extend out the doorway.
-Matthew Rink
Lawrence Park has high turnout early
In Lawrence Park, the voting line was out the door and around the corner before polls opened at 7 a.m. at U.E. LOCAL 506, 3923 Main St. More than 100 people have voted at the township's 2nd District site by 8:30 a.m.
-Nicholas Sorensen
Long lines at the polls Election Day morning
For the first time that several people said they could remember, a line stretched outside the Greater Erie Community Action Committee's Senior Center at West Eighth and Cranberry streets in Erie as voters waited to cast their ballots at about 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, 30 minutes after the polls opened. The number of ballots cast at the site around 7:30 a.m. had reached into the high 60s, when it is usually in the 20s. The polling place — District 8 in Erie's 4th Ward — includes the Frontier area and has about 1,200 registered voters, though many voted before Tuesday, a poll worker said.
-Ed Palattella
How many mail-in ballots have been returned so far?
As of Monday night, 33,192 mail-in ballots have been returned out of 42,254 applications, according to Erie County Clerk Karen Chillcott.
Chillcott said the numbers represent a 74% return rate and are "in line with Philadelphia and York counties."
-A.J. Rao
Erie County polling places open, no issues reported
All polling places in Erie County opened on time, according to Erie County Clerk Karen Chillcott. As of 7:25 a.m., no one had reported any issues to Chillcott or the Erie County Voter Registration Office from those nearly 150 polling places.
-Matthew Rink
What to know before going to the polls
Erie County Board of Elections list of voters who are able to correct their ballot return envelopes by Election Day: eriecountypa.gov/departments/elections-voting/
Looking for your polling place? Polling place locations are found here.
Brush up on how to use Erie County's voting machines: Learn how to use Erie County's new voting machines
Election Day in Pennsylvania: What to know
It is not necessary in Pennsylvania to show identification to vote unless it is your first time voting at a new polling location.
Call the Department of State voter hotline at 1-877-VOTESPA (1-877-868-3772) if you encounter problems or have a question that can’t be answered locally.
Looking for election results?
Visit GoErie.com/elections/results/local/ for live Erie County election results as they are regularly updated. Click here for Pennsylvania results and here for national results.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: PA election 2024: Erie County voter results
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