12th District special election: Unofficial results show Dukes likely winner over Timko
Brandon Dukes, the Democratic candidate, appears to have won the special election for Pennsylvania’s 12th state House District Tuesday, Aug. 18, defeating Republican Scott Timko by 88 votes, according to unofficial election night returns.
According to returns from Butler County Bureau of Elections, Dukes received 8,434 votes — about 50.1%; while Timko received 8,346 votes — about 49.6%. There are an additional 73 provisional ballots which are not reflected in the results. There were 35 write-in votes.
The elections bureau’s director, Chantell McCurdy, said the department is unclear whether the .5% automatic recount trigger applies to a special election and that the bureau is consulting its legal team.
Dukes will fill the final months of the current term for the seat, replacing former Rep. Stephenie Scialabba, a Republican, who resigned on March 31. He will now represent Adams, Cranberry and Jackson townships and the boroughs of Callery, Evans City, Harmony, Mars, Valencia and Zelienople in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives through the end of the year.
The seat has been held by Republicans since the 1990s.
“I’m ecstatic. I’m shocked,” Dukes said Tuesday night. “I’m still processing this. We just flipped a Trump +18 seat, and we flipped a red seat that’s been red for almost 30 years. We made history.”
Dukes, a Cranberry resident and commercial loan administrator at TD Bank, spent much of his campaign focused on infrastructure funding for projects, affordability and cost of living in, combating price gouging and supporting public education funding.
Timko, a Cranberry resident, is a retired Air Force captain, commercial pilot and former small business owner. He ran a conservative campaign, while also focusing on affordability. He ran on a tough stance on crime and illegal immigration, cutting wasteful government spending, ensuring local control over data center growth and calling himself a “Second Amendment champion.”
Timko could not be immediately reached for comment on his reaction to the results.
Turnout was high for a special election. Reports from precinct locations Tuesday morning indicated turnout would be strong. With final results in, the bureau of elections reported a 31.9% turnout of registered voters.
After the candidates spent months campaigning for Tuesday’s election, they will now immediately prepare for a rematch in the November general election for a full two-year term.
“I look forward to delivering results in Harrisburg, getting to deliver promises I said I’d try to deliver and bring much needed change,” Dukes said.
