Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district

Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district
	Boundaries beginning January 3, 2019; below statistics, except PVI, apply to old boundaries
Current Representative	Vacant
Distribution	87.30% urban; 12.70% rural;
Population (2000)	646,300
Median income	45,330
Ethnicity	89.5% White; 3.1% Black; 1.7% Asian; 7.9% Hispanic; 0.2% Native American; 0.2% other;
Cook PVI	R+20[1]

Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District is located in eastern Pennsylvania. The district stretches from the suburbs east of Harrisburg to communities east of Allentown and the New Jersey border. Counties located in the district include all of Lehigh County and parts of Berks County, Dauphin County, Lebanon County, and Northampton County.

From 2003 to 2013 it comprised all of Northampton County, most of Lehigh County, and small parts of Berks and Montgomery Counties. The district included the Lehigh Valley, Indian Valley and Upper Perkiomen Valley regions.

Despite a slight Democratic tilt due to the presence of fairly large cities such as Allentown and Bethlehem, the Democrats in the Lehigh Valley are nowhere near as liberal as their counterparts in the Philadelphia area. In particular, they tend to be somewhat conservative on social issues. As a result, it has been in Republican hands for all but six years since 1979. During 1999–2005, Pat Toomey represented the district. Since 2005, fellow Republican Charlie Dent has represented the district; in September 2017 he announced he would be retiring and not seek re-election in 2018. The district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index score of R+4.

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania redrew the district in February 2018 after ruling the previous map unconstitutional. The old 15th district will have its boundaries compressed around Allentown and become the seventh district, while the old fifth district will have its boundaries adjusted and become the 15th district for the 2018 election and representation thereafter.^[2]

Politically important district

The District consists principally of Lehigh County and Northampton County. It is considered politically important nationally, since it is usually heavily contested, with neither Republicans nor Democrats having been able to win the district consistently. Since at least the Second World War, the District's voters have chosen the presidential candidate that goes on to win Pennsylvania (and until 2000, Pennsylvania chose the eventual national winner). In the 2004 election, both President George W. Bush and his Democratic challenger, John Kerry, visited the district with regularity in an effort to win its swing voters. The result in the district was 148,679 votes for Kerry over 148,576 votes for Bush, a 103-vote margin of victory.

List of representatives

Representative	Party	Years	Electoral history	Location
District created in 1813
Vacant		March 4, 1813 – May 14, 1813		[Data unknown/missing.]
Thomas Wilson	Democratic- Republican	May 14, 1813 – March 3, 1817	First elected to finish Representative-elect Abner Lacock's term.
Robert Moore	Democratic- Republican	March 4, 1817 – March 3, 1821	Retired.
Patrick Farrelly	Democratic- Republican	March 4, 1821 – March 3, 1823	Redistricted to the 18th district.
Thomas Patterson	Jacksonian Democratic- Republican	March 4, 1823 – March 3, 1825	Redistricted from the 12th district. Lost renomination.	[Data unknown/missing.]
Joseph Lawrence	Adams	March 4, 1825 – March 3, 1829	Lost re-election.
William McCreery	Jacksonian	March 4, 1829 – March 3, 1831	Lost re-election.
Thomas M. T. McKennan	Anti-Masonic	March 4, 1831 – March 3, 1833	Redistricted to the 21st district.
Andrew Beaumont	Jacksonian	March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1837	Retired.	[Data unknown/missing.]
David Petrikin	Democratic	March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1841	[Data unknown/missing.]
Benjamin A. Bidlack	Democratic	March 4, 1841 – March 3, 1843	Redistricted to the 11th district.
Henry Nes	Independent Democratic	March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1845	[Data unknown/missing.]	[Data unknown/missing.]
Moses McClean	Democratic	March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1847	[Data unknown/missing.]
Henry Nes	Whig	March 4, 1847 – September 10, 1850	Died.
Vacant		September 10, 1850 – December 2, 1850
Joel B. Danner	Democratic	December 2, 1850 – March 3, 1851	[Data unknown/missing.]
William H. Kurtz	Democratic	March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1853	Redistricted to the 25th district.
James Gamble	Democratic	March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855	Redistricted from the 13th district.	[Data unknown/missing.]
John J. Pearce	Opposition	March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857	Retired.
Allison White	Democratic	March 4, 1857 – March 3, 1859	Lost re-election.
James T. Hale	Republican	March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1863	Redistricted to the 18th district.
Joseph Bailey	Democratic	March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1865	Redistricted from the 16th district.	[Data unknown/missing.]
Adam J. Glossbrenner	Democratic	March 4, 1865 – March 3, 1869	Lost re-election.
Richard J. Haldeman	Democratic	March 4, 1869 – March 3, 1873	Retired.
John A. Magee	Democratic	March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875	Lost renomination.	[Data unknown/missing.]
Joseph Powell	Democratic	March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877	Lost re-election.
Edward Overton, Jr.	Republican	March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1881	Lost renomination.
Cornelius C. Jadwin	Republican	March 4, 1881 – March 3, 1883	Lost re-election.
George A. Post	Democratic	March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1885	[Data unknown/missing.]	[Data unknown/missing.]
Frank C. Bunnell	Republican	March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1889	Retired.
Myron B. Wright	Republican	March 4, 1889 – November 13, 1894	Died.
Vacant		November 13, 1894 – February 23, 1895
Edwin J. Jorden	Republican	February 23, 1895 – March 3, 1895	Retired.
Vacant		March 4, 1895 – November 5, 1895
James H. Codding	Republican	November 5, 1895 – March 3, 1899	Elected after the death of Representative-elect Myron B. Wright. Retired.
Charles F. Wright	Republican	March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1903	Retired.
Elias Deemer	Republican	March 4, 1903 – March 3, 1907	Redistricted from the 16th district Lost re-election.	[Data unknown/missing.]
William B. Wilson	Democratic	March 4, 1907 – March 3, 1913	Lost re-election.
Edgar R. Kiess	Republican	March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1923	Redistricted to the 16th district.
Louis T. McFadden	Republican	March 4, 1923 – January 3, 1935	Redistricted from the 14th district Lost re-election.	[Data unknown/missing.]
Charles E. Dietrich	Democratic	January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1937	Lost re-election.
Albert G. Rutherford	Republican	January 3, 1937 – August 10, 1941	Died.
Vacant		August 10, 1941 – November 4, 1941
Wilson D. Gillette	Republican	November 4, 1941 – January 3, 1945	Redistricted to the 14th district.
Robert F. Rich	Republican	January 3, 1945 – January 3, 1951	Retired.	[Data unknown/missing.]
Alvin Bush	Republican	January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1953	Redistricted to the 17th district.	[Data unknown/missing.]
Francis E. Walter	Democratic	January 3, 1953 – May 31, 1963	Redistricted from the 21st district. Died.	[Data unknown/missing.]
Vacant		May 31, 1963 – July 30, 1963
Fred B. Rooney	Democratic	July 30, 1963 – January 3, 1979	First elected to finish Walter's term. Lost re-election.
Donald L. Ritter	Republican	January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1993	Lost re-election.
Paul F. McHale, Jr.	Democratic	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 1999	Retired.
Pat Toomey	Republican	January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2005	Retired to run for U.S. Senator.
Charlie Dent	Republican	January 3, 2005 – May 12, 2018	First elected in 2004. Re-elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2010.	2005 - 2013
Charlie Dent	Republican	January 3, 2005 – May 12, 2018	Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Re-elected in 2016. Resigned.	2013 – 2019
Vacant		May 12, 2018 – November 6, 2018
To be determined		November 6, 2018 – January 3, 2019	To be determined in the November 6, 2018 special election.
To be determined		from January 3, 2019	To be determined in the 2018 elections.	Beginning 2019

Recent Elections


Year	Election	Nominee	Party	Votes	%	Nominee	Party	Votes	%	Nominee	Party	Votes	%
2000	General	Pat Toomey	Republican	118,307	53%	Edward J. O'Brien	Democratic	103,864	47%
2002	General	Pat Toomey	Republican	98,493	57%	Edward J. O'Brien	Democratic	73,212	43%
2004	General	Charlie Dent	Republican	170,634	59%	Joe Driscoll	Democratic	141,646	39%
2006	General	Charlie Dent	Republican	106,153	54%	Charles Dertinger	Democratic	86,186	43%
2008	General	Charlie Dent	Republican	181,433	59%	Sam Bennett	Democratic	128,333	41%
2010	General	Charlie Dent	Republican	109,501	54%	John Callahan	Democratic	79,857	39%	Jake Towne	Independent	14,252	8%
2012	General	Charlie Dent	Republican	168,960	57%	Rick Daugherty	Democratic	128,764	43%
2014	General	Charlie Dent	Republican	128,285	100%
2016	General	Charlie Dent	Republican	185,204	58%	Rick Daugherty	Democratic	120,190	38%	Paul Rizzo	Libertarian	11,332	4%

References

↑ "New Pennsylvania Map Is a Major Boost for Democrats". The Cook Political Report. February 20, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
↑ Cohn, Nate; Bloch, Matthew; Quealy, Kevin (February 19, 2018). "The New Pennsylvania House Districts Are In. We Review the Mapmakers' Choices". The Upshot. The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2018.

Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

External links

Congressional redistricting in Pennsylvania

Coordinates: 40°31′44″N 75°57′45″W / 40.52889°N 75.96250°W / 40.52889; -75.96250

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[Cook-1] "New Pennsylvania Map Is a Major Boost for Democrats". The Cook Political Report. February 20, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2018.

[cbq-2] Cohn, Nate; Bloch, Matthew; Quealy, Kevin (February 19, 2018). "The New Pennsylvania House Districts Are In. We Review the Mapmakers' Choices". The Upshot. The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2018.