HARRISBURG, Pa. (WJAC) — With Democrats pulling off an upset in the state house by the skin of their teeth, there will be new leadership coming out of both parties.
With Democrats already saying Joanna McClinton, D- Philadelphia, will be their choice to be the new speaker. A day after current majority leader, Kerry Benninghoff, R-Centre, said he would not run for leadership in the next session, Republicans picked current House Speaker Bryan Cutler, R-Lancaster, to be their minority leader.
Centre County will also be losing power in the senate with the top senate leader Jake Corman retiring, Republicans there have picked Sen. Kim Ward, R-Westmoreland, to be the new Senate Pro Tempore, meaning both houses are poised to be led by women for the first time.
But as we told you last week, the speaker’s role could be in flux for a while.
That’s because the Democrat's one-seat majority will actually be a 101-101 tie at the start of the new session, due to the death of Rep. Tony DeLuca, who died weeks before Election Day but whom voters still selected as the top vote-getter. Two other Democrats are also leaving with Summer Lee giving up her seat to head to congress the day of the speaker’s vote, while Austin Davis will become the new lieutenant governor two weeks later.
Until special elections are done sometime between February and May, there will be a brief Republican majority again. It’s unknown how that will all play out come January 3rd when the speaker vote happens.
All three special elections are in safe Democrat territory, meaning that Democrats will eventually get that control back when they lose it.
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