Democrats Maintain Narrow Majority in Pennsylvania House of Representatives with Heather Boyd’s Victory

On Tuesday, Heather Boyd won a seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives representing the Philadelphia suburbs, beating Republican Katie Ford for a vacancy created by the resignation of Democratic Rep. Mike Zabel. This victory for the Democrats in the Delaware County district means first-term Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro will have at least a one-seat majority in the House.

Boyd’s win gives Democrats 102 seats, the minimum needed to control the agenda in the 203-member House. This means that the Democrats will have control over how the chamber will handle abortion, gun rights and election law legislation.

Zabel resigned from the Legislature in March, shortly after a lobbyist accused him of sexually harassing her. Following his resignation, the Delaware County Democratic Party selected Boyd as their nominee for the special election. Boyd is a former teacher and a member of the Upper Darby School Board.

The Republican Party nominated Katie Ford, a former Delaware County Council member and a former county GOP chair. Ford ran on a platform of reducing taxes, protecting Second Amendment rights, and fighting for school choice.

The victory for Boyd means that the Democrats will maintain their narrow majority in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. This will allow them to continue to control the agenda in the chamber and have a say in how legislation is handled.