Republican Wins Special Legislative Elections in Pennsylvania

Fred Keller, representative of the Republican state, Tuesday defeated Democrat Marc Friedenberg in the bid for the 12th Pennsylvania District Bid.

Keller's victory means that the district of north-central Pennsylvania will remain in the hands of Republicans after the former representative. Tom MarinoThomas (Tom) Anthony MarinoThe Morning's Morning – The White House, Congress: The Budget Urgency The Hill & # 39; s Morning – Immigration & Health Care Make One Of The Program for the second term of Trump Trump will hold a campaign rally on May 20 in Pennsylvania (R-Pa.) Resigned in January, less than a month after his fifth term.

The 12th district is still very much in favor of the GOP, unlike many districts in Pennsylvania that have become more competitive for Democrats after the state Supreme Court has ordered a redefinition of the state's congressional lines.

President TrumpDonald John TrumpThe Morning & # 39; s Morning – The White House, Congress: The GOP urgency in the press budget Press Trump to reach an agreement on spending Democrats are afraid to give Trump a victory over infrastructure PLUS would have brought the district by 36 points in 2016 if the current state congressional borders had been in place that year and if Keller had exceeded Friedenberg's spending by US $ 140,000, according to documents filed by the government federal.

Keller also received a last-minute boost Monday when Trump staged a rally in Montoursville, in the 12th district, to campaign with the GOP's hope.

Speaking to his supporters, Trump said the special election amounted to a "referendum" on his presidency.

"Go out tomorrow," urged Trump. "It's a bit of a referendum."

Friedenberg, an assistant professor at Pennsylvania State University, has come forward against Marino in 2018. He lost that election by more than 30 points.

While national parties largely escaped the 12th district special election, Keller's campaign tested some messages that Republicans hoped to use by 2020 to regain control of the House and retain control of the Senate.

During the election campaign, the representative of the GOP state accused Friedenberg of defending socialism in the same vein as Sen. Bernie SandersBernie SandersThe memo: Trump faces a steep rise for reelection California Democrats face crisis of credibility after lawsuits Fox's Brit Brit Brit looks back on his criticism of the chain . MORE (I-Vt.) And Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-CortezAlexandria Ocasio-CortezSteve Bullock places the decision of Citizens United in the center of presidential pressure Fix the climate with small families Dem Sen. Markey faces a potential main challenge in Massachusetts MORE (D-N.Y.) Making fun of liberal proposals such as the Green New Deal and "Medicare for All".

For his part, Friedenberg supports these proposals but has rarely discussed them in his campaign, focusing instead on a message based more on polls including issues such as health care and infrastructure.