- He remained on the ballot for the November 8 election despite passing away on October 9 from lymphoma
- There will be a special election to decide who will replace him in Pennsylvania after he won by a landslide
- Because his death was so close to the date of election there was not enough time to change the ballot or put another candidate in his place for the seat
A Pennsylvania state Representative won reelection with a landslide victory despite dying the month before the midterms.
Democrat Anthony DeLuca, 85, had been the state’s longest-serving representative before his death on October 9 from lymphoma – a disease he had previously beaten twice.
He bested his opponent, green candidate Queonia Livingston, by more than 85 per cent of the vote despite his passing.
There will be a special election in December decide who will get the seat, with his name not being removed from the ballot paper in time for the November 8 election.
There is no protocol in place for those who pass away within a month of the election to be removed from the ballot paper
Because his death was so close to the date of election there was not enough time to change the ballot or put another candidate in his place for the seat.
There is no protocol in place for those who pass away within a month of the election to be removed from the ballot paper.
Pennsylvania House Democratic campaign committee said: ‘While we’re incredibly saddened by the loss of Representative Tony DeLuca, we are proud to see the voters continue to show their confidence in him and his commitment to Democratic values by re-electing him posthumously.
A special election will follow soon.’
It is not the first time that a candidate has won an election posthumously, with brothel owner Dennis Hof winning a seat in the Nevada senate in 2018 as a Republican despite dying the month before.
However his victory did not trigger a special election because under Nevada state law county officials could appoint another republican to take his place for the entire term.
There will be a special election in December decide who will get the seat, with his name not being removed from the ballot paper in time for the November 8 election
He voted remotely on bills up until a few days before his death, while his opponent reminded people on Twitter that she was the only living candidate in the race following his passing
Because his death was so close to the date of election there was not enough time to change the ballot or put another candidate in his place for the seat
The final day for candidates to file their nominations to appear on the ballots for the midterm elections in Pennsylvania was March 31.
It means that upon his passing in October, DeLuca’s death was too close to the election to allow the party to nominate someone to replace him on the ballot.
Even if the Democratic party had wanted to replace him for the vote, it would not have been possible.
A special election will be organized for later in December to decide who replaces DeLuca.
t is unclear if voters were unaware of DeLuca’s passing, while others suggested that voters chose the name they were most familiar with.
DeLuca represented the 32nd legislative district of the state for 39 years and serves as the Democratic chairman of the House insurance committee for 20.
He voted remotely on bills up until a few days before his death, while his opponent reminded people on Twitter that she was the only living candidate in the race following his passing.
Livingston said: ‘Voting “safe” means because people in my district decided to vote for the guy that is now deceased; to honor his legacy.
‘We now have no one in our district, to represent us at all until the special election is over. I would love for someone to tell me how this is better??’
DeLuca leaves behind his four children, nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. He was preceded by his late wife of 66 years, Connie, after her battle with breast cancer.
There will now be three special elections held in Pennsylvania in the next few months, as seats will need to be filled for outgoing state representatives Summer Lee, who won her race for Congress against Republican Mike Doyle, and Austin Davis, who will resign to become the state’s Lt Governor.
Daily Mail (UK)