Ryan Mackenzie, a Republican state legislator, has defeated Representative Susan Wild, a Democrat, according to The Associated Press, flipping a critical House seat in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley in a major victory for the G.O.P.’s effort to hold control of the House.
Ms. Wild conceded on Wednesday morning, posting on social media: “There is no sugarcoating it: this is a bitterly disappointing outcome.” But she congratulated her opponent and pledged a smooth transition.
Mr. Mackenzie was vastly outdone in fund-raising by Ms. Wild, who had held the swing seat since 2018. But the district is favorable ground for Republicans, and Mr. Mackenzie ran on an “America First” message associated with former President Donald J. Trump, who carried Pennsylvania.
Mr. Mackenzie stressed his roots in the Lehigh Valley and blasted the direction of the country under the Biden administration.
He backed Mr. Trump’s efforts to overturn the will of Pennsylvania voters in 2020 and throw out the state’s electoral votes, declared that the United States was being “invaded” by illegal immigrants, and ran ads that featured Ms. Wild vouching for President Biden’s mental fitness, accusing her of lying to the public.
During the campaign, Ms. Wild savaged Mr. Mackenzie for his refusal to accept the 2020 election results, called him an “extremist” opponent of abortion rights and slammed him over reports that he lied about his age on the dating app Tinder to appear eight years younger.
House Speaker Mike Johnson visited in the district in the final days before the election to campaign for Mr. Mackenzie. He joined Mr. Mackenzie in greeting voters at the polls on Election Day.
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