Susan Wild wins Democratic nomination for hotly contested 2018 congressional race

Impact

Former Allentown city solicitor Susan Wild will be the Democratic nominee for one of the most important races in the Democratic party’s plan to try and retake the House of Representatives in November — Pennsylvania’s 7th congressional district.

The Washington Post called the race for Wild with more than 90% of precincts reporting and Wild leading her nearest opponent by 2 percentage points.

Pennsylvania’s 7th district is a newly drawn district that Hillary Clinton would have won by 1 percentage point in 2016. The contest is an open race to replace Republican Rep. Charlie Dent, who announced he would resign from Congress without finishing his term in April.

In the Democratic primary, Wild received the endorsement of national pro-choice groups NARAL and Emily’s List.

The race was considered a three way contest between Wild and two other candidates, Greg Edwards, an African-American pastor who had the backing of the national progressive group Our Revolution, and John Morganelli, a conservative white Democrat who opposed gun control and abortion and supports a crack down on illegal immigration.