Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti flipped Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District on Tuesday, unseating the freshman GOP Rep. Rob Bresnahan, who faced scrutiny over his stock trading throughout his first term.
The Associated Press called the race for Cognetti at 10:41 p.m. With 94% of ballots counted, Cognetti held 55.2% of the vote, compared to Bresnahan, who held 44.8%.
The victory marks a significant victory for Democrats. The party held the red-trending district for more than two decades before former Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright lost to Bresnahan in 2024.
Cognetti centered her campaign on Bresnahan’s prolific and controversial stock trading, an issue that plagued the freshman Republican over the last two years despite having campaigned on banning congressional stock trading. She also repeatedly tied Bresnahan to Trump’s record in office and the war in Iran.
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The 8th District, which includes Scranton, voted for President Donald Trump in the last two presidential cycles, notably by almost 9 points in 2024.
Cognetti, who took over as mayor in 2020, has faced criticism over her record, with Bresnahan and Republicans claiming the city experienced a spike in crime under her tenure, a narrative that the mayor has pushed back on.