Your feedback ensures we stay focused on the facts that matter to you most—take our survey

Pennsylvania's 13th Congressional District election, 2024 (April 23 Democratic primary)

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search


Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge-smaller use.png
U.S. Senate • U.S. House • Attorney General • State executive offices • State Senate • State House • Special state legislative • Local ballot measures • How to run for office
Flag of Pennsylvania.png


2026 →
← 2022
Pennsylvania's 13th Congressional District
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: February 13, 2024
Primary: April 23, 2024
General: November 5, 2024
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Pennsylvania
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
DDHQ and The Hill: Safe Republican
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2024
See also
Pennsylvania's 13th Congressional District
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th • 14th • 15th • 16th • 17th
Pennsylvania elections, 2024
U.S. Congress elections, 2024
U.S. Senate elections, 2024
U.S. House elections, 2024

A Democratic Party primary took place on April 23, 2024, in Pennsylvania's 13th Congressional District to determine which Democratic candidate would run in the district's general election on November 5, 2024.

Beth Farnham advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 13.

All 435 seats were up for election. At the time of the election, Republicans had a 220 to 212 majority with three vacancies.[1] As of June 2024, 45 members of the U.S. House had announced they were not running for re-election. To read more about the U.S. House elections taking place this year, click here.

In the 2022 election in this district, the Republican candidate won 100.0%-0.0%. Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. Donald Trump (R) would have defeated Joe Biden (D) 72.0%-26.8%.[2]

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
February 13, 2024
April 23, 2024
November 5, 2024


A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Pennsylvania utilizes a closed primary process. Voters are required to register with a political party to vote in the primary election.[3][4]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

This page focuses on Pennsylvania's 13th Congressional District Democratic primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Republican primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Candidates and election results


Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 13

Beth Farnham advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 13 on April 23, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Beth Farnham
Beth Farnham Candidate Connection
 
98.8
 
32,568
 Other/Write-in votes
 
1.2
 
404

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2

Total votes: 32,972
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Beth Farnham

Image of Beth Farnham

WebsiteFacebookTwitter

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "Beth Farnham is long-time resident of Conewago Township in Adams County, Pennsylvania, an elected Adams County Democratic Committee member, a married mother of children enrolled in public school, a former public school board member, and a champion of progressive causes. Like many Pennsylvanians who live near the Mason-Dixon line, Beth is a native Marylander, having graduated from Annapolis Sr. High School, Anne Arundel Community College, and Towson University. With a degree in Biology, French, and Secondary Education, Beth uses that knowledge, in addition to her past experience as a credit analyst, an administrative assistant for an aerial work platform manufacturer, a facilitator of Medicare B claims, and a pharmacy technician, to do some occasional consulting work for an A.I. company. While Beth existed as a Registered Republican for over 25 years, she was always sympathetic to Democratic causes. During the 2016 election, she fully realized just how much the Republican party subverted American ideals of Democracy for conspiracy theory and Christian nationalism, so she voted only for Democrats. Imbued with a deep love for our country, Beth is dedicated to Our Precious Democracy, Reproductive Freedom - including abortion access, Immigration Reform, Gun Sense, Evidence-based Science, Public Education, and Universal Healthcare, marching and protesting for these issues for years, but it is time to turn her activism into a seated vote in the US House of Representatives."

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

We must protect and strengthen Our Precious Democracy. The United States of America has historically been a beacon of Democracy, changing the world with its norms of voting rights, peaceful transitions of power, and oaths to the Constitution, instead of to any leaders. However, in December 2020, Donald Trump, now an accused criminal, denied the valid election of President Joe Biden, and, with his worshippers, threatened the Democracy we hold so dear. Spreading false claims about election fraud and failing to install fake electors, Trump incited a violent insurrection at our nation's Capitol, absconded with classified documents, and is now indicted for both. Trump and his supporters must be held accountable or our Democracy will die.

We must enshrine into law our Reproductive Freedom, including abortion access. We own our bodies and have agency over them. To deprive us of such fundamental rights is to relegate us to second class citizenship. If we permit states to come between us and healthcare decisions, including that of abortion (like the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022 did), birth control, and gender-affirming care, then the control of our bodies, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, is at greater risk of loss. Congress must enact these and other healthcare rights into law.

Gun violence is the number one killer of US children. To prevent further tragedy, Congress must pass sensible legislation for Americans to safely store firearms, report losses or theft of firearms, ensure universal background checks for all gun sales, and deploy Extreme Risk Protection Orders. Most Americans support sensible gun legislation, but many Republican congressionals have rejected The Will of the People. It is time to change this by electing Democratic candidates, like Beth Farnham, to Congress who will enact such sensible legislation.

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Pennsylvania District 13 in 2024.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Pennsylvania

Election information in Pennsylvania: April 23, 2024, election.

What was the voter registration deadline?

  • In-person: April 8, 2024
  • By mail: Received by April 8, 2024
  • Online: April 8, 2024

Was absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

N/A

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

  • In-person: April 16, 2024
  • By mail: Received by April 16, 2024
  • Online: April 16, 2024

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

  • In-person: April 23, 2024
  • By mail: Received by April 23, 2024

Was early voting available to all voters?

N/A

What were the early voting start and end dates?

N/A to April 16, 2024

Were all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, was a photo or non-photo ID required?

N/A

When were polls open on Election Day?

7:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. (EST)


Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Beth Farnham Democratic Party $65,575 $64,297 $1,277 As of December 31, 2024

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2024. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

  • District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
  • Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2024 U.S. House elections in the state.
  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
  • State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.


Below was the map in use at the time of the election. Click the map below to enlarge it.

2023_01_03_pa_congressional_district_013.jpg
See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2024

This section contains data on U.S. House primary election competitiveness in Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania U.S. House competitiveness, 2014-2024
Office Districts/
offices 		Seats Open seats Candidates Possible primaries Contested Democratic primaries Contested Republican primaries % of contested primaries Incumbents in contested primaries % of incumbents in contested primaries
2024 17 17 0 45 34 4 2 17.6% 3 17.6%
2022 17 17 2 48 34 5 6 32.4% 2 13.3%
2020 18 18 0 51 36 6 5 30.6% 2 11.1%
2018 18 18 7 84 36 13 8 58.3% 6 54.5%
2016 18 18 2 44 36 4 5 25.0% 4 25.0%
2014 18 18 2 46 36 6 3 25.0% 2 12.5%

Post-filing deadline analysis

The following analysis covers all U.S. House districts up for election in Pennsylvania in 2024. Information below was calculated on April 7, 2024, and may differ from information shown in the table above due to candidate replacements and withdrawals after that time.

Forty-five candidates ran for Pennsylvania’s 17 U.S. House districts, including 25 Democrats and 20 Republicans. That’s 2.65 candidates per district, less than in the previous three election cycles. There were 2.82 candidates per district in 2022, 2.83 candidates per district in 2020, and 4.66 in 2018.

No districts were open in 2024, meaning all incumbents ran for re-election.

Seven candidates ran for the 10th Congressional District, the most candidates that ran for a district in 2024. The candidates included Republican incumbent Scott Perry and six Democrats.

Seven primaries—four Democratic and three Republican—were contested in 2024, the fewest this decade.

Three incumbents—two Democrats and one Republican—were in contested primaries. That’s higher than in 2022 and 2020 when two incumbents faced challengers, respectively.

The 3rd Congressional District was guaranteed to Democrats because no Republicans filed to run.

Partisan Voter Index

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

Heading into the 2024 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+25. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 25 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Pennsylvania's 13th the 13th most Republican district nationally.[5]

2020 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2020 presidential election would have been in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by Daily Kos.

2020 presidential results in Pennsylvania's 13th based on 2024 district lines
Joe Biden Democratic Party Donald Trump Republican Party
26.8% 72.0%

Inside Elections Baselines

See also: Inside Elections

Inside Elections' Baseline is a figure that analyzes all federal and statewide election results from the district over the past four election cycles. The results are combined in an index estimating the strength of a typical Democratic or Republican candidate in the congressional district.[6] The table below displays the Baseline data for this district.

Inside Elections Baseline for 2024
Democratic Baseline Democratic Party Republican Baseline Republican Party Difference
29.6 67.3 D+37.7

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in Pennsylvania, 2020

Pennsylvania presidential election results (1900-2020)

  • 14 Democratic wins
  • 16 Republican wins
  • 1 other win
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020
Winning Party R R R P[7] R R R R R D D D R R R D D D R D R R R D D D D D D R D
See also: Party control of Pennsylvania state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Pennsylvania's congressional delegation as of May 2024.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Pennsylvania
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 1 7 8
Republican 1 10 11
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 17 19

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Pennsylvania's top four state executive offices as of May 2024.

State executive officials in Pennsylvania, May 2024
Office Officeholder
Governor Democratic Party Josh Shapiro
Lieutenant Governor Democratic Party Austin Davis
Secretary of State Republican Party Al Schmidt
Attorney General Democratic Party Michelle Henry

State legislature

Pennsylvania State Senate

Party As of February 2024
     Democratic Party 22
     Republican Party 28
     Independent 0
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 50

Pennsylvania House of Representatives

Party As of February 2024
     Democratic Party 101
     Republican Party 100
     Other 0
     Vacancies 2
Total 203

Trifecta control

The table below shows the state's trifecta status from 1992 until the 2024 election.

Pennsylvania Party Control: 1992-2024
One year of a Democratic trifecta  •  Twelve years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Governor D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D R R R R D D D D D D D D D D
Senate R D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
House D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R D D

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Pennsylvania in the 2024 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Pennsylvania, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2024
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Pennsylvania U.S. House Ballot-qualified party 1,000 $150.00 2/13/2024 Source
Pennsylvania U.S. House Unaffiliated 2% of votes cast in the district in the last election $150.00 8/1/2024 Source

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ A majority in the U.S. House when there are no vacancies is 218 seats.
  2. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2020 presidential results by congressional district, for new and old districts," accessed September 15, 2022
  3. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures Website, "State Primary Election Types," accessed September 24, 2024
  4. ↑ Casetext, "25 Pa. Stat. § 299," accessed September 24, 2024
  5. ↑ Cook Political Report, "The 2022 Cook Partisan Voting Index (Cook PVI℠)," accessed January 10, 2024
  6. ↑ Inside Elections, "Methodology: Inside Elections’ Baseline by Congressional District," December 8, 2023
  7. ↑ Progressive Party


Pennsylvania's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
John Fetterman (D)
David McCormick (R)
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
Republican Party (11)
Democratic Party (8)


v • e
2023-2024 Elections to the United States Congress
Senate by StateCongressLogo.png
House by State
Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming
Election information
Super PACs/Organizations
Retrieved from "https://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=Pennsylvania%27s_13th_Congressional_District_election,_2024_(April_23_Democratic_primary)&oldid=9613051"