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Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District

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Incumbent

Glenn Thompson

Assumed office: January 3, 2019

Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District in theUnited States House of Representatives is represented byGlenn Thompson (R).

As of the 2020 Census, Pennsylvania representatives represented an average of 765,403 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 707,495 residents.

Elections

There are noofficial candidates yet for this election.

General election

The primary will occur on May 19, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

Ray Bilger (D) is running in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on May 19, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Ray Bilger

	There are noincumbents in this race.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) is running in the Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on May 19, 2026.

		Candidate
		Glenn Thompson

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined.
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General election

General election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) defeatedZach Womer (D) in the general election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Glenn Thompson (R)	71.3	279,027
	Zach Womer (D)	28.5	111,408
	Other/Write-in votes	0.2%	782

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 391,217
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

Zach Womer (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on April 23, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Zach Womer	98.5	35,574
	Other/Write-in votes	1.5%	555

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 36,129
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on April 23, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Glenn Thompson	99.0	75,645
	Other/Write-in votes	1.0%	790

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 76,435
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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General election

General election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) defeatedMichael Molesevich (D) in the general election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on November 8, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Glenn Thompson (R)	69.9	213,417
	Michael Molesevich (D)	30.1	91,729

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 305,146
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

Michael Molesevich (D) defeatedRonnie Ray Jenkins (D) in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on May 17, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Michael Molesevich (Write-in)	32.9	3,380
	Ronnie Ray Jenkins (Write-in)	0.0	0
	Other/Write-in votes	67.1%	6,904

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 10,284
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Rick Telesz (D)

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on May 17, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Glenn Thompson	98.3	99,270
	Other/Write-in votes	1.7%	1,756

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 101,026
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

George Rathmell (R)

General election

General election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) defeatedRobert Williams (D) andRonnie Ray Jenkins (D) in the general election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on November 3, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Glenn Thompson (R)	73.5	255,058
	Robert Williams (D)	26.5	92,156
	Ronnie Ray Jenkins (D) (Write-in)	0.0	0

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 347,214
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

Robert Williams (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Robert Williams	100.0	48,714

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 48,714
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Glenn Thompson	100.0	88,364

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 88,364
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Special election

General election

Special general election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

Susan Wild (D) defeatedMarty Nothstein (R) andTim Silfies (L) in the special general election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on November 6, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Susan Wild (D)	48.5	130,353
	Marty Nothstein (R)	48.3	129,594
	Tim Silfies (L)	3.2	8,579

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 268,5260
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Regular election

General election

General election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) defeatedSusan Boser (D) in the general election for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on November 6, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Glenn Thompson (R)	67.8	165,245
	Susan Boser (D)	32.2	78,327

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 243,5720
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

Susan Boser (D) defeatedWade Jodun (D) in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on May 15, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Susan Boser	74.6	20,411
	Wade Jodun	25.4	6,965

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 27,376
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15

IncumbentGlenn Thompson (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 15 on May 15, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Glenn Thompson	100.0	45,322

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 45,322
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Previous election results

2016

See also:Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpediarated this race as safely Republican. IncumbentCharlie Dent (R) defeatedRick Daugherty (D) andPaul Rizzo (L) in the general election on November 8, 2016. No candidate faced a primary opponent in April.^[1]^[2]

**U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2016**
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Charlie DentIncumbent	58.4%	190,618
	Democratic	Rick Daugherty	38%	124,129
	Libertarian	Paul Rizzo	3.6%	11,727
Total Votes				326,474
Source:Pennsylvania Department of State

2014

See also:Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District elections, 2014

The 15th Congressional District of Pennsylvania held an election for theU.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. IncumbentCharlie Dent (R) ran unopposed in the general election.

**U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2014**
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Charlie DentIncumbent	100%	128,285
Total Votes				128,285
Source:Pennsylvania Secretary of State

2012

See also:Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District elections, 2012

The 15th Congressional District of Pennsylvania held an election for theU.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. IncumbentCharlie Dent won re-election in the district.^[3]

**U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2012**
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Rick Daugherty	43.2%	128,764
	Republican	Charlie DentIncumbent	56.8%	168,960
Total Votes				297,724
Source:Pennsylvania Department of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2010

On November 2, 2010, Charles W. Dent won re-election to theUnited States House. He defeated John B. Callahan (D) and Jake Towne (Towne for Congress) in the general election.^[4]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Charles W. Dentincumbent	53.5%	109,534
	Democratic	John B. Callahan	39%	79,766
	Towne for Congress	Jake Towne	7.5%	15,248
Total Votes				204,548

2008

On November 4, 2008, Charles W. Dent won re-election to theUnited States House. He defeated Sam Bennett (D) in the general election.^[5]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2008
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Charles W. Dentincumbent	58.6%	181,433
	Democratic	Sam Bennett	41.4%	128,333
Total Votes				309,766

2006

On November 7, 2006, Charles W. Dent won re-election to theUnited States House. He defeated Charles Dertinger (D), Greta Browne (Green) and Write-in challengers in the general election.^[6]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2006
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Charles W. Dentincumbent	53.6%	106,153
	Democratic	Charles Dertinger	43.5%	86,186
	Green	Greta Browne	2.9%	5,802
	N/A	Write-in	0%	32
Total Votes				198,173

2004

On November 2, 2004, Charles W. Dent won election to theUnited States House. He defeated Joe Driscoll (D), Richard J. Piotrowski (L) and Greta Browne (Green) in the general election.^[7]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2004
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Charles W. Dent	58.6%	170,634
	Democratic	Joe Driscoll	39.4%	114,646
	Libertarian	Richard J. Piotrowski	1.3%	3,660
	Green	Greta Browne	0.8%	2,194
Total Votes				291,134

2002

On November 5, 2002, Patrick J. Toomey won re-election to theUnited States House. He defeated Edward J. O'Brien (D) and various write-in candidates in the general election.^[8]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2002
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Patrick J. Toomeyincumbent	57.4%	98,493
	Democratic	Edward J. O'Brien	42.6%	73,212
	N/A	Write-in	0%	8
Total Votes				171,713

2000

On November 7, 2000, Pat Toomey won re-election to theUnited States House. He defeated Ed O'Brien (D) in the general election.^[9]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2000
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Patrick J. Toomeyincumbent	53.3%	118,307
	Democratic	Ed O'Brien	46.7%	103,864
Total Votes				222,171

District map

Redistricting

2020-2021

See also:Redistricting in Pennsylvania after the 2020 census

On February 23, 2022, thePennsylvania Supreme Court ruled to enact a new congressional map.^[10] Over a dozen maps were submitted to the supreme court, including the map approved by the legislature. The court ultimately selected the Carter map in a 4-3 ruling, which was submitted by a group of Pennsylvania citizens who were petitioners in a redistricting-related lawsuit. JusticesDebra Todd (D),Sallie Mundy (R), andKevin Brobson (R) dissented.^[11]Spotlight PA's Kate Huangpu wrote that the map is "as similar as possible to the current congressional map, with nearly 90% of residents staying in the same district."^[11] This map took effect for Pennsylvania's 2022 congressional elections.

The state supreme court took authority over the redistricting process after Gov.Tom Wolf (D) vetoed the legislature's enacted map on January 26.^[12] ThePennsylvania House of Representatives voted to approve the initial map 110-91 on January 12, and thePennsylvania State Senate voted 29-20 to approve the map on January 24.^[13]^[14] Following Wolf's veto, the authority for determining a new map initially rested with a lower court, but in a February 2 ruling the supreme court ruled that it would have control over the process to select a new congressional map.^[15]

How does redistricting in Pennsylvania work? In Pennsylvania, the statutory authority to draw congressional district boundaries is vested with thePennsylvania General Assembly. These lines are subject to gubernatorial veto.^[16]

State legislative district lines are drawn by a politician commission. Established in 1968, the commission comprises five members:^[16]

The majority leader of thePennsylvania State Senate appoints one member.
The minority leader of thePennsylvania State Senate appoints one member.
The majority leader of thePennsylvania House of Representatives appoints one member.
The minority leader of thePennsylvania House of Representatives appoints one member.
The first four commissioners appoint a fifth member to serve as the commission's chair. If the commission is unable to reach an agreement, thePennsylvania Supreme Court must appoint a commission chair.^[16]

ThePennsylvania Constitution requires that state legislative districts be contiguous and compact. Further, state legislative districts should "respect county, city, incorporated town, borough, township and ward boundaries." There are no such requirements in place for congressional districts.^[16]

2020

2024

2018

On January 22, 2018, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court struck down the state's congressional district map, finding that the map constituted an illegalpartisan gerrymander. On February 19, 2018, the court adopted a remedial map for use in the 2018 election cycle. Pennsylvania Republicans filed suit in federal district court to prevent implementation of the new map. The district court dismissed the suit on March 19, 2018. State Republicans also petitioned the Supreme Court of the United States to stay the state supreme court's order pending appeal. The court rejected this request on March 19, 2018. To learn more, seehere.

2010-2011

This is the 15th Congressional District prior to the2010 redistricting.

See also:Redistricting in Pennsylvania after the 2010 census

The Legislative Reapportionment Commission inPennsylvania approved the GOP-proposed map. It was signed into law on December 22, 2001.^[17]^[18]

District analysis

See also:The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

See also:FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores

2026

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, theCook Partisan Voter Index for this district is R+19. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 19 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Pennsylvania's 15th the 38th most Republican district nationally.^[19]

2024

Heading into the 2024 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, theCook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+21. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 21 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Pennsylvania's 15th the 39th most Republican district nationally.^[20]

Daily Kos calculated what the results of the2020 presidential election in this district would have been followingredistricting.Donald Trump (R) would have defeatedJoe Biden (D) 67.8%-30.8%.^[21]

2022

Heading into the 2022 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, theCook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+21. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 21 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Pennsylvania's 15th the 37th most Republican district nationally.^[22]

Daily Kos calculated what the results of the2020 presidential election in this district would have been followingredistricting.Joe Biden (D) would have received 30.8% of the vote in this district andDonald Trump (R) would have received 67.8%.^[23]

2018

Heading into the 2018 elections, based on results from the 2016 and 2012 presidential elections, theCook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+20. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 20 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District the 38th most Republican nationally.^[24]

FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 1.06. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 1.06 points toward that party.^[25]