Control of Pa. House hinges on 35th District special election
Three candidates are on the ballot in the traditionally Democratic 35th District.
Democrat Dan Goughnour attends a fund raiser in McKeesport, Pa., Thursday, March 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Not only will Mon Valley voters decide Tuesday who assumes office in Legislative District 35, but the special election’s outcome will determine control of the state House.
Republicans and Democrats have been tied at 101 members apiece in the House after the death of McKeesport Democrat Matthew Gergely in January.
Republican Chuck Davis campaigns in Clairton, Pa., on Friday, March 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
All registered voters in the district, regardless of political party affiliation, are eligible to vote in this special election. Voters should check their voter registration status at www. pavoterservices.pa.gov to confirm if this special election is applicable to them.
Precincts in the 35th Legislative District are: Clairton, Duquesne, Homestead, Munhall, Liberty, Lincoln, McKeesport, Port Vue,
Adam Kitta
Versailles, West Homestead, West Mifflin (districts 3, 4, 15), Whitaker and White Oak.
Democrat Dan Goughnour, Republican Chuck Davis and Libertarian Adam Kitta will vie for the open seat.
Goughnour, 39, serves as the captain of detectives for the McKeesport Police Department and is a member of the McKeesport Area School Board.
“I have risen through the ranks of the police department,” Goughnour said. “I have a leadership mindset. The experience I have gained under these roles will help guide me to be a strong voice for everyone as the state representative for the 35th district.”
A 19-year law enforcement veteran, Goughnour graduated from McKeesport Area High School in 2003 and the Allegheny County Police Academy in 2006.
Davis is a longtime White Oak councilman and has served as a volunteer firefighter for 48 years.
“I am running for office to bring a strong vision for economic growth, public safety and government transparency,” Davis said. “Now more than ever, we need proven leadership to tackle the challenges we face — from improving education and public safety to driving economic growth and ensuring government accountability.”
Kitta, 26, is a White Oak resident and the assistant director for Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services of Western Pennsylvania. He’s also the vice president of Pennsylvania Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, a state affiliate of the National VOD, which is made up of various organizations that work to provide disaster relief and recovery.
“In my professional experience working in disaster relief and recovery, I have collaborated with all levels of government, both in Pennsylvania and other states, and worked on state-wide disaster response plans for the commonwealth,” Kitta said.
The 35th District generally leans blue, as the last three representatives to hold the office were Democrats.
It would be a seismic upset for Republicans to flip it after the district went for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris over President Donald Trump in November, 58% to 42%. Gergely won it with 75% of the vote in a special election in 2023, and Republicans did not field a candidate against him last fall. In the 2022 gubernatorial race, Democrat Josh Shapiro also won three quarters of the district’s vote, swamping Republican state Sen. Doug Mastriano.
Rep. Jamie Barton of Schuylkill County, who leads campaigns for the Republican caucus in the state House, said Davis is in an uphill fight in the 35th, calling it a “strong-leaning Democratic district.” But he said new local GOP leadership has energized Republican voters.
“No matter who looks good on paper, you’ve got to have the election,” Barton said. “We’re not taking anything for granted.”
The Mon Valley Independent asked each candidate their three top priorities to address if elected: Davis pointed to lowering taxes in order to “keep more of your hard-earned money in your pocket, protecting jobs to strengthen the local economy and keeping communities safe” as his top priorities.
Goughnour listed public safety, public education and working with “unions/trades to expand the job force not only in the 35th District, but throughout the commonwealth.”
Kitta named economic stimulation, criminal justice reform and community building as issues he’d like to address, advocating for bringing trade and tech programs to the Mon Valley, the rehabilitation of convicted individuals and “empowering community based charity nonprofits with tax incentives for volunteer hours.”
