Democratic state representative from Western Pa. dies, leaving the House tied 101-101
State Rep. Matt Gergely's seat will be filled by a special election. Until then, the House will remain tied. The speaker, however, is a Democrat from Philadelphia.
A Democratic lawmaker from Allegheny County died over the weekend, leaving the state House of Representatives evenly split at 101-101 seats between the two parties.
Rep. Matt Gergely, 45, who won a special election in 2023 and was re-elected in November, died Sunday.
Gergely’s cause of death was not immediately disclosed, but he had suffered a medical emergency over the holidays that caused him to miss the first day of the legislative session two weeks ago.
A special election to fill the seat will be scheduled by House Speaker Joanna McClinton (D., Philadelphia).
“Our hearts are broken as we mourn the untimely loss of our friend and colleague,” Pennsylvania House Democrats said in a statement. “Matt Gergely devoted his life to fighting for children and working families of Allegheny County, especially his beloved hometown of McKeesport.”
Gov. Josh Shapiro on Monday ordered that flags on commonwealth grounds and public buildings fly at half-staff in honor of Gergely.
“Matt fought hard for his community as a state representative, bringing resources back to his district and championing critically important issues,” the Allegheny County House Democratic delegation said in a statement. Gergely’s key issues included supporting public schools and labor unions.
House Democrats from Pennsylvania stood up against November’s red-wave election, spending more than $18 million to retain a narrow majority in the chamber for the second-consecutive legislative session.
McClinton was reelected as House speaker this month, despite Gergely’s absence, after House Minority Leader Jesse Topper (R., Bedford) removed his name from consideration. Republicans chose to negotiate more favorable operating rules in the chamber, rather than challenging McClinton.
“We are at 101 to 101, and we will be that way for quite some time,” House Majority Leader Matt Bradford (D., Montgomery) acknowledged at the time, as Gergely had not been expected to immediately return to work. “Our chamber proved that it can cooperate and operate, and that is our bipartisan achievement that many did not think we could achieve.”
The bipartisan cooperation in Harrisburg is markedly different from January 2023, when Democrats emerged from the November 2022 election with a one-seat majority, having unexpectedly flipped the state House for the first time in 12 years. But they were temporarily in the minority when two members resigned after winning higher office and a third member died.
Instead of supporting McClinton, Republicans reached an unusual deal with with state Rep. Mark Rozzi (D., Berks) to serve as an “independent” House speaker. That led to a chaotic period during which Rozzi locked Republicans out of an office suite without warning.
After a special election in February 2023, Democrats re-formed their majority and Rozzi stepped aside, making McClinton the first woman and second Black person elected House speaker in Pennsylvania.