There are 228 state legislative seats up for election this year in Pennsylvania. Across those, 17 incumbents (six Democrats and 11 Republicans) did not file to run for re-election. That’s the fewest number of retirements since Ballotpedia began tracking this data in 2010. From 2010 to 2022, the average number of retirements per cycle was 26.6. In 2022, 38 incumbents did not run for re-election (nine Democrats and 28 Republicans).
The total number of contested primaries (with more than one candidate) was also a decade-low. In 2024, there are 36 contested primaries (16 Democratic and 20 Republican) out of a possible 456, a rate of 7.9%. This is the lowest number since Ballotpedia began tracking these data in 2010. The next lowest year was 2016 when 49 primaries had more than one candidate, a rate of 10.7%. In 2022, there were 81 primaries (35 Democratic and 46 Republican) for a rate of 17.8% contested primaries.
Pennsylvania has a divided government. The Democratic Party controls the offices of governor, attorney general, and the lower chamber of the state legislature, while the Republican Party controls the office of secretary of state and the upper chamber of the state legislature.
As of April 12, 2024, there are 23 Republican trifectas, 17 Democratic trifectas, and 10 divided governments where neither party holds trifecta control.
Pennsylvania’s state legislative primaries are scheduled for April 23.
