| Pennsylvania's 6th congressional district | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Interactive map of district boundaries since January 3, 2023
(Chester County outlined in red) | |||
| Representative |
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| Population (2022) | 771,296[2] | ||
| Median household income | $98,751[3] | ||
| Ethnicity |
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| Cook PVI | D+5[4] | ||
Pennsylvania's 6th congressional district is a district in the state of Pennsylvania. It includes all of Chester County and the southeastern portion of Berks County including the city of Reading and its southeastern suburbs. The district is represented by Democrat Chrissy Houlahan, who has served in Congress since 2019. As currently drawn, the district is among the wealthiest in Pennsylvania. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania redrew the district in February 2018 after ruling the previous map unconstitutional.[5]
Jim Gerlach served as the district's Representative from 2003 to 2014. In 2004 and 2006, Gerlach won re-election against fellow attorney and now Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas Judge Lois Murphy. In 2008, he successfully ran for re-election against businessman and veteran Bob Roggio. In the 2010 and 2012 elections, Gerlach defeated physician and Iraq War veteran Manan Trivedi, the Democratic nominee.
In January 2014, Gerlach announced that he would not stand for reelection to the 114th Congress. In the race to succeed Gerlach, Chester County Commissioner Ryan Costello won the Republican nomination and physician and Iraq war veteran Manan Trivedi secured the Democratic party's nomination.[6]
In February 2018, following the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania's ordered redrawing of congressional districts, Costello announced he would not stand for reelection and retire at the end of the 115th Congress, leaving businessman Greg McCauley as the sole Republican candidate while the Democrats nominated Air Force veteran Chrissy Houlahan.[7] Houlahan defeated McCauley in the general election.[8]
| Year | Office | Results |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Representative | Gerlach 51.4–48.6% |
| 2004 | President | Kerry 52–48% |
| Representative | Gerlach 51–49% | |
| 2006 | Representative | Gerlach 50.7–49.3% |
| 2008 | President | Obama 58–41% |
| Representative | Gerlach 52.1–47.9% | |
| 2010 | Representative | Gerlach 57.1–42.9% |
| 2012 | President | Romney 50.6–48.1% |
| Representative | Gerlach 57.1–42.9% | |
| 2014 | Representative | Costello 56.3–43.7% |
| 2016 | President | Clinton 47.6–47.0% |
| Representative | Costello 57.3–42.7% | |
| 2018 | Representative | Houlahan 58.8–41.1% |
| 2020 | President | Biden 56.9–41.9% |
| Representative | Houlahan 56.1–43.9% | |
| 2022 | Governor | Shapiro 61–37% |
| Senate | Fetterman 56–41% |
Prior to the court-ordered redistricting, the 6th district's incarnation dated back to 2002. Its strange shape brought charges of gerrymanderingbyDemocrats who argued it "looms like a dragon descending on Philadelphia from the west, splitting up towns and communities throughout Montgomery and Berks Counties."[9] The combination of very affluent suburban areas of Philadelphia and sparsely populated rural areas was possibly designed to capture Republican voters, but changes in voting patterns in southeastern Pennsylvania has made the district much more competitive. The district had a Cook Partisan Voting Index score of R+1 after the 2012 redistricting. It was rated D+4 before then.[10] The district included parts of Montgomery County, Chester County, Berks County and Lehigh County. The largest cities in the district were Reading and Norristown.
The redistricting of 2011/2012 changed it to include parts of Chester, Montgomery, Berks and Lebanon counties. The following municipalities constituted the sixth district:[11]
Berks County
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Chester County
| Townships | Boroughs |
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Lebanon County
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Montgomery County
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The court-ordered map made the 6th a more compact district in Berks and Chester counties.[5]
District created in 1791 from the at-large district.
| Representative | Party | Years | Cong ress |
Electoral history | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District first established March 4, 1791 | |||||
 Andrew Gregg (Carlisle) |
Anti-Administration | March 4, 1791 – March 3, 1793 |
2nd | Elected in 1791. Redistricted to the at-large district. | |
District redistricted in 1793 to the at-large district.
District created in 1795.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jim Gerlach (Incumbent) | 191,725 | 57.1 | |
| Democratic | Manan Trivedi | 143,803 | 42.9 | |
| Total votes | 335,528 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ryan Costello | 119,643 | 56.3 | |
| Democratic | Manan Trivedi | 92,901 | 43.7 | |
| Total votes | 212,544 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ryan Costello (incumbent) | 207,469 | 57.2 | |
| Democratic | Mike Parrish | 155,000 | 42.8 | |
| Total votes | 362,469 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Chrissy Houlahan | 177,704 | 58.9 | |
| Republican | Greg McCauley | 124,124 | 41.1 | |
| Total votes | 301,828 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Chrissy Houlahan (incumbent) | 226,440 | 56.1 | |
| Republican | John Emmons | 177,526 | 43.9 | |
| Total votes | 403,966 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Chrissy Houlahan (incumbent) | 190,386 | 58.3 | |
| Republican | Guy Ciarrocchi | 136,097 | 41.7 | |
| Total votes | 326,483 | 100.00 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
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40°03′37″N 75°38′27″W / 40.06028°N 75.64083°W / 40.06028; -75.64083
