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WITF live coverage of the 2022 Pennsylvania election

This coverage is part of WITF’s election pledge. 

Look to WITF online and on the air for live coverage of the 2022 election.

On Election Day, WITF journalists will work across the region to update you on how the election is going. Our reporters will be at polling places and at the candidates’ headquarters.

Additionally, our public media partners across Pennsylvania will help provide comprehensive coverage through the night.

Listen to WITF-FM and follow WITF.org/news as we bring you the latest.

 

Results:

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Live updates from our reporters and partners:

12:25 a.m.

Democrat Josh Shapiro won the race for governor of Pennsylvania on Tuesday, securing the office for four years in a state where the future of abortion rights is on the line, along with management of the 2024 election in a battleground that is often decisive in choosing presidents.

Shapiro, the state’s two-term elected attorney general, ran to the middle on several key issues and smashed Pennsylvania’s campaign finance record in a powerhouse campaign, swamping Republican Doug Mastriano in a deluge of TV ads. – The Associated Press

12:05 a.m. 

11:55 p.m.

 

11:41 p.m.

The Associated Press has yet to call the Pennsylvania governor’s race but Josh Shapiro has taken the stage and is speaking.

11:25 p.m.

U.S. Republican Congressman Scott Perry made a stop at a GOP election night party at Boomerang Bar & Grill in Cumberland County.

Perry, who is favored to win against Democrat Shamaine Daniels, said that with Republicans poised to take control of the House of Representatives, he plans to focus on lowering inflation.

Asked whether voters should trust the results of the close races where Democrats win, Perry did not provide a clear answer but said “we’re not headed in the right direction.”

“We should be able to know and have confidence in our election, on election night, who won,” Perry said. “Why are we being told that we need to be patient?”

Perry declined to comment on the likelihood that the Department of Justice will indict former President Donald Trump or whether that could spell legal trouble for him.

As of late Tuesday night, the race between Perry and Daniels is closer than forecast. – Brett Sholtis, WITF

11 p.m.

10:25 p.m.

 

Mastriano got up in front of the crowd at 10 p.m. and said he looks forward to declaring victory in a few hours. Polls have closed statewide. Attorney General Josh Shapiro is leading as votes are counted.

Mastriano’s running mate, Carrie DelRosso told the crowd this is the time to “have fun, have faith, and remember that when we wake up tomorrow, we’re going to have Governor Mastriano.”

Election results will not be certified until Nov. 28. The next governor will take office in January.

Mastriano said Pennsylvania is a light of liberty. Then quoted a Flight 93 passenger who tried to stop the hijackers on 9/11: “Let’s roll.”

He walked off the stage to chants of “Doug for Gov!” – Rachel McDevitt, WITF 

Around 75 supporters of Congressman Matt Cartwright and other Lackawanna County Democrats are gathered at the Waldorf Social Club in Scranton.Cartwright is running in a rematch against Republican Jim Bognet to represent the 8th congressional district which covers all of Wayne, Pike and Lackawanna counties and parts of Luzerne and Monroe counties.Luzerne County polls will close at 10 p.m. Acting Director of Elections Beth McBride requested the extension after polling places started to run out of the type of paper the county uses to print and count ballots from its electronic voting machines.Democrat and State Rep. Bridget Kosierowski arrived at 9:35 to a round of applause. She is running against Republican David Burgerhoff for the 114th District which covers parts of Lackawanna. Current Scranton City Council president and Democrat Kyle Donahue was also welcomed to the club with a round of applause while Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” played. He is running against Republican Aaron Sepkowski for the state representative seat in District 13, which also covers parts of Lackawanna County.Classic rock plays from a DJ booth set up behind a row of campaign yard signs.  – Kat Bolus, WVIA

 

10:10 p.m.

Acting Secretary of State Leigh Chapman tonight said that elections around the state have been largely successful, aside from the uncertainty of what will happen with undated or incorrectly dated mail-in ballots. Read the full story here: Pennsylvania declares a “free, fair and secure election,” though mail-in ballot issues loom

9:33 p.m.

Hours after polls closed, more than a hundred people have started filling up the Newtown Athletic Club in Bucks County where Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz is hosting an Election Night watch party.

Some Oz supporters could be seen wearing suits with American flag designs, and some wearing hats referencing former President Donald Trump, who has endorsed Oz throughout the Senate race.

Folks could be waiting a while for election results to come in, as votes from tonight, as well as potentially more than a million mail-in ballots will need to be counted. – Cory Sharber, WHYY

Sophia Schmidt / WHYY

Pa. State Senator Sharif Street thanked Josh Shapiro’s supporters and asked them to hang around the results at the post-election campaign party on November 8, 2022. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)

At the campaign headquarters of Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro — the Democrat in the closely watched race for PA governor — the mood is festive.

Music blares over speakers in a boxy expo center, where throngs of supporters gather around large TV screens, watching results pour in across the state.

“It’s going to be a good night, looks like,” said Father Martini Shaw of the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas in Philadelphia, a friend and supporter of Shapiro.

Polling places have closed in Pennsylvania, but the results may take a while to trickle in. Voter polls leading up to election day favored Shapiro, who has far outspent his opponent.

The race for PA’s governor — between Shapiro and Republican state Senator Doug Mastriano — is seen as key to the future of voting laws, abortion access, climate action, and a slew of other issues in the state.

“I think Mastriano is just absolutely too conservative for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Shaw said. “I think that Josh Shapiro has proven to be a strong, effective leader.” — Sophia Schmidt, WHYY

In recent days, Mastriano has scoffed at the idea that counting ballots could take days. He talked about it with former Trump adviser Steve Bannon on Bannon’s War Room, saying if the country has the technology to put a man on the moon, we should have the technology to count ballots quickly.

But some attendees at the watch party are willing to be patient, and acknowledge that counting votes correctly can take time.

Alex Georgeff of Hummelstown said he hopes cool heads will prevail when results are final.

“I just pray that people are calm and peaceful, regardless of who wins,” he said. – Rachel McDevitt, WITF

9:20 p.m.

Republican Scott Perry looks to win re-election in Pa’s 10th congressional district against immigration lawyer Shamaine Daniels. His campaign is expected to stop by Boomerang Bar & Grill in New Cumberland in about an hour.

Perry supporters, including the Congressman’s brother, have begun to gather, so I will have more to report soon.

Perry is favored to win his sixth term in office. — Robby Brod, WITF

At 9:04 p.m., an emcee took the stage and asked the crowd: Who’s your next governor?” The crowd shouted back “Doug!”

Mastriano, his wife, Rebbie, and Lt. Gov. candidate Carrie DelRosso took the stage just after 9 p.m. and started throwing t-shirts into the crowd.

A chaplain gives an opening prayer, noting Mastriano’s role in opposing “tyranny” during COVID-19 shutdowns. The prayer is followed by the pledge of allegiance and national anthem. — Rachel McDevitt

9:00 p.m.

A few hundred supporters have gathered at the Penn Harris Hotel ballroom in Camp Hill in the hopes of celebrating a victory for their candidate, Republican state senator Doug Mastriano.

The room is upbeat, with music, photo ops, and food and drink.

But not everyone is optimistic. One supporter, Bob Pyle of Snyder County, said victory here tonight is doubtful.

Mastriano is set to take the stage around 9:30. A prayer service and other entertainment is scheduled before that. — Rachel McDevitt, WITF

8:06 p.m.

Polls are closed in Pennsylvania. Election Day polls are closed in most of Pennsylvania, but the process is far from over. Here’s what happens now.

 

7:44 p.m.

In Allegheny County, while the election is proceeding smoothly by all accounts, the county’s elections court has issued a handful of orders regarding concerns at area polling places.”

One court order named several individuals purportedly with an entity called “The Commission Security.”

The order said they were “purporting to be poll security” and required them to “cease and desist from traveling to or entering any polling place in Allegheny County and/or interfering with the operations and functioning of any polling place.

County officials say election workers received a call about individuals claiming to have a contract to provide security and asking voters for information. “Commission” members had apparently departed the scene by the time deputies arrived leaving them with no one to serve the order on. But they advised poll workers in Wilkinsburg to keep an eye out for the group.

The court also ordered a man to stop filming and taking photographs inside a polling location earlier today after election workers observed him doing do. Lawyers from the county cited state statutes and case law establishing that videotaping inside a polling place may be considered voter intimidation.

“A constable told him not to do that but he would not accept that so we ended up sending a sheriff,” said county attorney Dennis Biondo said.

The man voluntarily left the polling place, which was not immediately identified, after he was served with the order.

Also today, the court issued a cease-and-desist order barring an Upper St. Clair Republican Committee officer from entering any polling place in Allegheny County.  The court issued the order in response to reports that the party official instructed poll workers to orally announce who people were voting for as they cast their ballots. -WESA’s Chris Potter and India Krug.

6:46 p.m.

5:20 p.m.

A judge in Pennsylvania did not order local officials to count mail ballots received six days after Election Day, contrary to viral misinformation on Twitter claiming so. Full story here.

5:10 p.m.

What to know about the election lawsuits filed so far

As ballots are cast and tallied across Pennsylvania, important election developments are also happening concurrently in state and federal courts.

Two cases have already affected today’s process. Philadelphia commissioners this morning acquiesced to a GOP lawsuit and agreed to reinstate a time-consuming double-check for double votes, which means the city’s results will take longer.

And in Luzerne County, a judge extended polling place hours until 10 p.m. after a paper shortage dramatically slowed voting in three dozen precincts.

Other lawsuits are still active.

Two different groups have filed suit in federal court, challenging a state Supreme Court ruling that held undated and misdated mail ballots should not be counted in this year’s election. One suit came Monday from U.S. Senate candidate John Fetterman’s campaign, as well as the Democratic Congressional and Senate Campaign Committees and individual voters.

Another was filed last week by Pennsylvania’s NAACP, League of Women Voters, and other groups.

Both suits argue the state Supreme Court’s decision violated federal civil rights law — an argument that previously saw success in federal court before the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the decision on procedural grounds.

The U.S. District Court for Pennsylvania’s Western District is holding a joint conference on both cases Wednesday at 9:30 a.m.

Other challenges have already been knocked down. In Monroe County, the county GOP committee sued late last week to bar election workers from curing flawed ballots — which the state Supreme Court has held that counties are allowed to do — saying that election workers were “tampering” with ballots.

A Monroe County Common Pleas judge held Monday that he did not “find that there was fraud involved or that there was political partisanship undertaken by [county] staff,” and denied the injunction. So far, there has been no appeal. —Katie Meyer, Spotlight PA

4:09 p.m.

What redistricting may mean for one Harrisburg suburb

Before this year’s redistricting cycle, the state House district that encompassed Susquehanna Township — a diverse, middle-income suburb of Harrisburg — was lumped in with rural Lebanon County, creating a red-leaning district despite the area’s Democratic voting patterns.

Under the new map, the township anchors its own blue-leaning district, which appears likely to flip from Republicans.

This district was designed to have a critical mass of Black and brown voters in hopes of encouraging new, diverse faces in the legislature.

Thomas Jordan, a 29-year-old consultant, is a neighbor of the Democratic legislative candidate, Justin Fleming.

Jordan, who is Black, said voting for Fleming is one of the main reasons he turned out to vote Tuesday.

The Harrisburg area has a large Black population, Jordan noted, and the increased representation is good. But beyond Fleming’s identity, Jordan said his neighbor is “an open-minded person who can represent all citizens.”

Jordan is open-minded himself. A registered independent, he wants candidates who support small businesses, particularly Black-owned ones hurt by the pandemic. He also wants less lip service to the community from the Democratic Party and more concrete gains on issues like criminal justice reform.

Black men, in particular, Jordan said, “don’t get praised when we do vote overwhelmingly Democratic. And if we don’t vote Democrat, we’re being used.”

That being said, Jordan still will vote for the party when it makes sense to. He backed Attorney General Josh Shapiro in the governor’s race because Republican candidate Doug Mastriano seems too extreme.

In the U.S. Senate race, Jordan said he voted for the Libertarian candidate Erik Gerhardt. He doubted Republican Mehmet Oz’s authenticity and was worried about Democrat John Fetterman’s health.

Jordan wasn’t the only ticket splitter. Darrian Collevechio, a 28-year-old marketing and sales worker, lives just a few blocks away from the elementary school being used as a polling place. She’s drawn to vote by a mix of economic and social issues, including inflation concerns and support for women’s reproductive health care.

A registered Republican, Collevechio said she split her ticket — something she’s done more in recent years — but declined to elaborate on her exact choices.

“I’m pretty middle on everything,” she said. —Stephen Caruso, Spotlight PA

3:13 p.m.

 

2:38 p.m.

1:05 p.m.

The room where it happens (in Lehigh County)

On a typical Tuesday, Liliana Delgado can be found at William Allen High School where she’s a senior. But today, Delgado was on the bottom floor of the Lehigh County Government Center sorting through ballots.

Delgado was one of the dozens of students who volunteered to become poll workers or ballot counters for the election.

Her job is to take the ballots out of their envelopes. She described seeing each person’s vote in her own hands as “cool.” Alex Sierra, an employee of the Government Center, came to Delgado’s school as a part of an outreach program to get students involved in their election process and local government.

“[Sierra] was talking about when people think about voting, they think about older people,” Delgado said. “But we want them to think about younger people and look to the future.”

Delgado, who will be joining the Marines Corps at the end of her senior year, said the experience has only deepened her interest in the election process.

Matt Smith / For Spotlight PA

Mail-in ballots are sorted and counted Nov. 8, 2022, at Lehigh County Government Center in Allentown, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.

Working alongside Delgado is Tim Benyo, Lehigh County’s election director. Though the latest directives for mail ballots came just days before Nov. 8, county election directors across the state have been preparing for months, and anticipated changes at the eleventh hour.

“For us, it’s just more work to be last-minute and to have a whole new process added,” said Benyo. “We prepare for months and to have a change at the last minute, it invites errors.”

Just a few weeks before the election, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ordered election administrators to hold back on counting mail ballots that are undated or misdated and separate them. The high court also issued guidance as to what counted as an incorrectly dated mail ballot only days before the election.

Benyo said the policy changes resulted in more voters coming in to fix ballots errors. This limits the amount of space available for ballot counters to work. Luckily, the county was able to purchase an electronic ballot sorter that cuts down on time.

Alongside the workers, there were also eight observers in the ballot-counting room. They represented different candidates and parties: GOP nominees Doug Mastriano and Mehmet Oz, Democratic U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, and the local Republican and Democratic parties.

Drummond Taylor of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party said he arrived at 6:45 a.m. and expects to stay until all the ballots are counted. He’s been serving as a liaison between county election officials and volunteers located at polling places.

“I’ve got nothing but faith,” said Taylor about the ballot-processing mechanisms. —Kate Huangpu, Spotlight PA

12:26 p.m.

A slower count expected in Philadelphia

A last-minute change to Philadelphia’s vote-counting plan means that Pennsylvania’s largest, most heavily Democratic county will take longer than it originally anticipated to finish tabulating ballots.

Philadelphia officials had initially projected that they would be mostly finished counting ballots by Wednesday morning. It was an important prediction. The incorrect idea that a slow vote count means something nefarious is going on is common in right-wing political circles and is frequently used to cast doubt on election results in places like Philly.

But now, some tens of thousands of mail ballots still left to count on Tuesday night will need to be counted more slowly through the week, according to The Inquirer.

That’s not a sign that anything is wrong with the count — just that election workers are conducting an extra, time-consuming check for double votes.

That check is known as poll book reconciliation — a process by which poll workers scan poll book pages into the state’s voter registry to check in-person votes against mail votes. All counties do this eventually, but for the past few years, Philadelphia has been one of the only counties to conduct the check during its initial vote count.

This allowed it to catch double votes that may have slipped through the initial checks that all polling places are required to conduct to make sure nobody votes twice.

Philadelphia’s commissioners had decided to forego that process this year for several reasons. It’s time-consuming, there were no double votes caught by the process in the last three elections, other counties don’t do it, and it involves pausing the count, which commissioners worried could violate a new election law that requires counties to tabulate ballots continuously.

But a conservative group called RITE — Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections — sued the commissioners, arguing poll book reconciliation is necessary. The case went to Philadelphia Common Pleas Court, where a judge ruled that it was too close to the election for the commissioners to change their process, but that they were wrong to get rid of poll book reconciliation. RITE appealed the case to Commonwealth Court.

The morning of Election Day, commissioners backtracked, saying they were reinstating poll book reconciliation because, as GOP City Commissioner Seth Bluestein said, “while we technically won the court case, the decision was written in such a way that we have no choice but to reinstate the process.”

Bluestein added that he wants to “make it very clear” that “when there are conversations that occur later this evening about whether or not Philadelphia has counted all of their ballots, that the reason that some of the ballots will not be counted is that Republican attorneys targeted Philadelphia, and only Philadelphia, and tried to force us to do a procedure that no other county does.”

Shortly after the commissioners announced their decision, RITE issued a statement apparently responding to Bluestein, saying that “if there are delays, only the Commissioners are to blame.” —Katie Meyer, Spotlight PA

11 a.m.

Mail ballot counting going smoothly in Lancaster County after rough primary

Lancaster County’s mail ballot counting operation was humming along smoothly as of 8:30 a.m.

Unlike in the primary — when poll workers had to remark thousands of ballots by hand due to a printing error — ballots opened today were being run through scanners without issue.

“Everything is scanning, everything is going well,” Elections Director Christa Miller told County Commissioner Ray D’Agostino, chair of the board of elections.

Roughly two dozen volunteers, overseen by county staff and partisan poll watchers, ensured the number of ballots received from a precinct matched what was recorded, opened the outer and inner envelopes with a high-speed slicer, and flattened out ballots for tabulation machines.

D’Agostino could not provide an estimate of the number of ballots counted so far this morning, but said the county planned to count all ballots received before Tuesday, roughly 41,000, today. Ballots received on Election Day will be counted Wednesday.

He said that the requirement to count continuously, a mandate for counties receiving election grants under Act 88, would not be a major issue for the county as it has had experience with counting continuously in the 2020 election.

—Carter Walker, Votebeat / Spotlight PA

9:45 a.m

The Cumberland County Bureau of Elections began counting mail-in ballots and absentee ballots at 7 a.m., according to a press release from the county.

Counting will continue throughout the day until all ballots are counted.

More than 29,607 ballots were sent out to Cumberland County voters who requested to vote by mail-in or absentee, as of 9 a.m., 26,181 have been returned.

—Jeremy Long, WITF digital producer

 

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Politics & Policy

Election Day polls are closed in Pennsylvania, but the process is far from over. Here’s what happens now.