Midterm results: Incumbent Matt Cartwright defeats Trump-endorsed Jim Bognet to represent PA’s 8th District
Brady Knox
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Incumbent Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright defeated Trump-endorsed Republican challenger Jim Bognet to represent Pennsylvania’s 8th District.
Cartwright’s victory marks his sixth consecutive term in office, after defeating Pennsylvania’s longest-serving representative in a 2012 primary. Despite the district’s long Democratic voting history, Donald Trump won it over President Joe Biden, giving Cartwright the status as one of the few Democrats who won in a district the former president also won in 2020.
Cartwright had already faced Bognet in 2020, defeating him by 3.6 percentage points.
The Pennsylvania Democrat stressed his status as a centrist, boasting on his website that he “introduced more bills with Democratic and Republican support than any other House Democrat since he was first elected.”
In contrast, Bognet ran on a staunchly conservative platform.
“Jim served in my Administration and helped bring manufacturing jobs back to Northeast Pennsylvania. In Congress, he will fight to Grow our Economy, Build the Wall, Defend the Second Amendment, and Support our Brave Military, Vets, and Law Enforcement,” former President Donald Trump said in his endorsement.
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The district is also notable for containing Scranton, Biden’s birthplace.
Cartwright had outraised his opponent more than two times over, bringing in $4.9 million compared to Bognet’s $2.4 million. The large fundraising advantage helped push the Pennsylvania Democrat over the edge in a close race described as a toss-up by several election analysts.