Special election to replace former state Rep. Jeff Pyle to be May 18

Voters in Pennsylvania’s 60th State House District will choose a replacement for former state Rep. Jeff Pyle in a special election May 18, officials said Monday.

That’s the same day as Pennsylvania’s primary.

Pyle, a Republican from Ford City, was three months into his ninth term representing a district that includes parts of Armstrong, Butler and Indiana counties when he announced his retirement last week, citing health reasons.

Armstrong County Elections Director Marybeth Kuznik said political parties have until Sunday to nominate a candidate to fill Pyle’s former seat.

The winner of the special election will be sworn in after the special election is certified and then serve out the remainder of Pyle’s term. The seat would be up for grabs again in the 2022 election.

On Monday, Pyle endorsed his former Chief of Staff Abby Major, 36, to replace him.

Major, also a Republican from Ford City, served on Pyle’s staff for more than a decade. Before that, she served as an Army intelligence analyst and was deployed to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005 and was an intern under former state Rep. Jeff Coleman, who represented the district before Pyle.

Major said she could pick up where Pyle left off and has the contacts to go after grants for constituents. She said she would work on behalf of working-class residents and challenge Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s budget proposal.

“We are approaching budget season and I am committed to stopping his latest budget proposal that increases the personal income tax,” she said.

Republicans will formally nominate their candidate Wednesday, Major said.

Democrats will vote on their candidate Thursday evening, said Butler County Democratic Committee Chairwoman Catherine LaLonde.

Two to three candidates are interested, according to Armstrong County Democratic Chairman Steve Atwood. The party was still in the process of confirming interested candidates Monday.

Democrats had not nominated a candidate to run against Pyle in the past three elections, Atwood said.

“It’s a tough area” for Democrats to win, Atwood said, noting fewer than 40% of the district’s registered voters are Democrats.