Election Night Results: Shapiro, Cognetti and Brooks Win

As of late, followers of politics have been accustomed to getting results in the early hours following Election Day (and in some cases days later). Not last night….

Governor. The AP called the race for Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) at 8:01 p.m. Statewide, with an estimated 93 percent of votes counted, AP's tally had Shapiro at 60 percent (2,894,256 votes) and Stacy Garrity (R) at 39 percent (1,860,673). In Monroe, Shapiro had 61 percent (36,822 votes) and Garrity at 37 percent (22,729).

Garrity conceded around 9 p.m. She said she called Shapiro to congratulate him, then added a parting shot, saying she hoped her campaign reminded him that Pennsylvania "just doesn't deserve, but needs, a full-time chief executive." Garrity has argued since launching her campaign that Shapiro is more focused on running for president than on the state. In my view, Shapiro's victory speech could have passed for the kickoff of a presidential run. He is widely mentioned as a possible 2028 contender.

U.S. House, 8th District. AP called the race for Paige Cognetti (D), the Scranton mayor, at 10:41 p.m. Rep. Rob Bresnahan Jr. (R) had held the seat since 2024, when he won narrowly. District-wide, the state's unofficial returns show Cognetti at 54 percent (152,583 votes) and Bresnahan at 46 percent (128,081). The district covers Lackawanna, Pike and Wayne counties and parts of Luzerne and Monroe, so Monroe's numbers are only a slice. In Monroe, Cognetti fared even better with 60 percent of the vote.

U.S. House, 7th District. AP called the race for Bob Brooks (D) at 10:27 p.m. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R) was in his first term. The district is all of Carbon, Lehigh and Northampton counties plus a small part of Monroe. District-wide, the state's unofficial returns show Brooks at 56 percent (160,625 votes) and Mackenzie at 44 percent (127,117).

State House. All three races are called, and in all three the incumbent won by double digits, based on unofficial returns.

The 115th: AP called it for Maureen Madden (D) at 11:22 p.m., and she had 63 percent to Rich Szabo's (R) 37 percent.

The 176th: AP called it for Jack Rader (R) at 11:44 p.m., and he had 56 percent to Thomas Kucer's (D) 44 percent.

The 189th, which covers part of Monroe and part of Pike County: AP called it for Tarah Probst (D) at 10:25 p.m., and she had 65 percent to Danica Hartenfels' (R) 35 percent. In the Monroe portion of the 189th alone, the county's tally has Probst at 68 percent.

State Senate, 40th District: not called. One race was still open as of 12:43 a.m.: the 40th District state Senate seat, which covers all of Monroe and parts of Lackawanna and Wayne counties. AP had not called it. Brian Wrightson (D) led Sen. Rosemary Brown (R), the incumbent, by about 3 percentage points, and AP estimated about 96 percent of the vote was counted, so votes remain. The state's unofficial totals for the whole district showed Wrightson at 51 percent (50,072 votes) and Brown at 49 percent (47,283), a gap of 2,789 votes. In Monroe, with all 55 precincts reporting, Wrightson had 53 percent of the vote. We do not know exactly how many votes are outstanding or where they are.

Turnout. The county's page put turnout at 51 percent, with 61,025 ballots tabulated out of 118,818 registered voters. At the Stroud Municipal Building, where I voted, I arrived in a lull, with eight people ahead. A poll worker told me turnout had been heavy, especially at 7 a.m. When a voter asked for a sticker, the worker said, "We ran out. Apparently, nobody thought this many people were going to show!" That is one polling place and one worker, not a countywide count.

What happens next. All results here are unofficial. Monroe's numbers are from the county's results page as of 11:04 p.m. Tuesday, when it showed all 55 of 55 precincts reporting. AP's calls and the district and statewide totals are as of 12:15 to 12:43 a.m. Wednesday. The county says provisional ballots are reviewed later and counted only if they are verified, and calls can still change until the count is final. We will update the Senate race as soon as AP calls it or the counties report more.