Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district
Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district | ||
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Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district - since January 3, 2013. | ||
Current Representative | Charlie Dent (R–Allentown) | |
Distribution | 87.30% urban, 12.70% rural | |
Population (2000) | 646,300 | |
Median income | $45,330 | |
Ethnicity | 89.5% White, 3.1% Black, 1.7% Asian, 7.9% Hispanic, 0.2% Native American, 0.2% other | |
Cook PVI | R+2[1] |
Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District is located in eastern Pennsylvania. The district stretches from the suburbs east of Harrisburg to communities east of Allentown and the New Jersey border. Counties located in the district include all of Lehigh County and parts of Berks County, Dauphin County, Lebanon County, and Northampton County.
From 2003 to 2013 it comprised all of Northampton County, most of Lehigh County, and small parts of Berks and Montgomery Counties. The district included the Lehigh Valley, Indian Valley and Upper Perkiomen Valley regions.
Despite a slight Democratic tilt due to the presence of fairly large cities such as Allentown and Bethlehem, the district traditionally has elected Republicans recently. During 1999–2005, Pat Toomey represented the district. Since 2005, fellow Republican Charles Dent has represented the district. The district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index score of R +2.
Politically important district
The District consists principally of Lehigh County and Northampton County. It is considered politically important nationally, since it is usually heavily contested, with neither Republicans nor Democrats having been able to win the district consistently. Since at least the Second World War, the District's voters have chosen the presidential candidate that goes on to win Pennsylvania (and until 2000, Pennsylvania chose the eventual national winner). In the 2004 election, both President George W. Bush and his Democratic challenger, John Kerry, visited the district with regularity in an effort to win its swing voters. The result in the district was 148,679 votes for Kerry over 148,576 votes for Bush, a 103-vote margin of victory.
List of representatives
Representative | Party | Years | Electoral history |
---|---|---|---|
District created in 1813 | |||
Vacant | March 4, 1813 – May 14, 1813 | ||
Thomas Wilson | Democratic- Republican |
May 14, 1813 – March 3, 1817 |
Elected after the resignation of Representative-elect Abner Lacock |
Robert Moore | Democratic- Republican |
March 4, 1817 – March 3, 1821 |
Retired |
Patrick Farrelly | Democratic- Republican |
March 4, 1821 – March 3, 1823 |
Redistricted to the 18th district |
Thomas Patterson | Jacksonian Democratic- Republican |
March 4, 1823 – March 3, 1825 |
Redistricted from the 12th district Lost renomination |
Joseph Lawrence | Adams | March 4, 1825 – March 3, 1829 |
Lost re-election |
William McCreery | Jacksonian | March 4, 1829 – March 3, 1831 |
Lost re-election |
Thomas M. T. McKennan | Anti-Masonic | March 4, 1831 – March 3, 1833 |
Redistricted to the 21st district |
Andrew Beaumont | Jacksonian | March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1837 |
Retired |
David Petrikin | Democratic | March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1841 |
[Data unknown/missing. You can help!] |
Benjamin A. Bidlack | Democratic | March 4, 1841 – March 3, 1843 |
Redistricted to the 11th district |
Henry Nes | Independent Democratic |
March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1845 |
[Data unknown/missing. You can help!] |
Moses McClean | Democratic | March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1847 |
[Data unknown/missing. You can help!] |
Henry Nes | Whig | March 4, 1847 – September 10, 1850 |
Died |
Vacant | September 10, 1850 – December 2, 1850 | ||
Joel B. Danner | Democratic | December 2, 1850 – March 3, 1851 |
[Data unknown/missing. You can help!] |
William H. Kurtz | Democratic | March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1853 |
Redistricted to the 25th district |
James Gamble | Democratic | March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855 |
Redistricted from the 13th district |
John J. Pearce | Opposition | March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857 |
Retired |
Allison White | Democratic | March 4, 1857 – March 3, 1859 |
Lost re-election |
James T. Hale | Republican | March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1863 |
Redistricted to the 18th district |
Joseph Bailey | Democratic | March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1865 |
Redistricted from the 16th district |
Adam J. Glossbrenner | Democratic | March 4, 1865 – March 3, 1869 |
Lost re-election |
Richard J. Haldeman | Democratic | March 4, 1869 – March 3, 1873 |
Retired |
John A. Magee | Democratic | March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875 |
Lost renomination |
Joseph Powell | Democratic | March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877 |
Lost re-election |
Edward Overton, Jr. | Republican | March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1881 |
Lost renomination |
Cornelius C. Jadwin | Republican | March 4, 1881 – March 3, 1883 |
Lost re-election |
George A. Post | Democratic | March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1885 |
[Data unknown/missing. You can help!] |
Frank C. Bunnell | Republican | March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1889 |
Retired |
Myron B. Wright | Republican | March 4, 1889 – November 13, 1894 |
Died |
Vacant | November 13, 1894 – February 23, 1895 | ||
Edwin J. Jorden | Republican | February 23, 1895 – March 3, 1895 |
Retired |
Vacant | March 4, 1895 – November 5, 1895 | ||
James H. Codding | Republican | November 5, 1895 – March 3, 1899 |
Elected after the death of Representative-elect Myron B. Wright Retired |
Charles F. Wright | Republican | March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1903 |
Retired |
Elias Deemer | Republican | March 4, 1903 – March 3, 1907 |
Redistricted from the 16th district Lost re-election |
William B. Wilson | Democratic | March 4, 1907 – March 3, 1913 |
Lost re-election |
Edgar R. Kiess | Republican | March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1923 |
Redistricted to the 16th district |
Louis T. McFadden | Republican | March 4, 1923 – January 3, 1935 |
Redistricted from the 14th district Lost re-election |
Charles E. Dietrich | Democratic | January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1937 |
Lost re-election |
Albert G. Rutherford | Republican | January 3, 1937 – August 10, 1941 |
Died |
Vacant | August 10, 1941 – November 4, 1941 | ||
Wilson D. Gillette | Republican | November 4, 1941 – January 3, 1945 |
Redistricted to the 14th district |
Robert F. Rich | Republican | January 3, 1945 – January 3, 1951 |
Retired |
Alvin Bush | Republican | January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1953 |
Redistricted to the 17th district |
Francis E. Walter | Democratic | January 3, 1953 – May 31, 1963 |
Redistricted from the 21st district Died |
Vacant | May 31, 1963 – July 30, 1963 | ||
Fred B. Rooney | Democratic | July 30, 1963 – January 3, 1979 |
First elected to finish Walter's term Lost re-election |
Donald L. Ritter | Republican | January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1993 |
Lost re-election |
Paul F. McHale, Jr. | Democratic | January 3, 1993 – January 3, 1999 |
Retired |
Pat Toomey | Republican | January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2005 |
Retired to run for U.S. Senate |
Charlie Dent | Republican | January 3, 2005 – Present |
First elected in 2004 |
Recent Elections
Year | Election | Nominee | Party | Votes | % | Nominee | Party | Votes | % | Nominee | Party | Votes | % | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | General | Pat Toomey | Republican | 118,307 | 53% | Edward J. O'Brien | Democratic | 103,864 | 47% | |||||||
2002 | General | Pat Toomey | Republican | 98,493 | 57% | Edward J. O'Brien | Democratic | 73,212 | 43% | |||||||
2004 | General | Charlie Dent | Republican | 170,634 | 59% | Joe Driscoll | Democratic | 141,646 | 39% | |||||||
2006 | General | Charlie Dent | Republican | 106,153 | 54% | Charles Dertinger | Democratic | 86,186 | 43% | |||||||
2008 | General | Charlie Dent | Republican | 181,433 | 59% | Sam Bennett | Democratic | 128,333 | 41% | |||||||
2010 | General | Charlie Dent | Republican | 109,501 | 54% | John Callahan | Democratic | 79,857 | 39% | Jake Towne | Independent | 14,252 | 8% | |||
2012 | General | Charlie Dent | Republican | 168,960 | 57% | Rick Daugherty | Democratic | 128,764 | 43% | |||||||
2014 | General | Charlie Dent | Republican | 128,285 | 100% | |||||||||||
2016 | General | Charlie Dent | Republican | 185,204 | 58% | Rick Daugherty | Democratic | 120,190 | 38% | Paul Rizzo | Libertarian | 11,332 | 4% | |||
Historical district boundariesSee alsoReferences
External linksCoordinates: 40°31′44″N 75°57′45″W / 40.52889°N 75.96250°W |