By Gabriel Brogan

On March 25th, Democratic State Senate candidate James Malone flipped PA’s 36th senate district blue for the first time since 1890, according to ABC news. Where is the 36th senate district? Right here in Lancaster County.

Malone ran against Josh Parsons in a special election triggered by the resignation of republican Ryan Aument last year, who took a position with PA senator Dave McCormick, reported WGAL. Malone won by only 482 votes. 

Malone’s victory has attracted attention on the national level- news sources like CNN, Fox, and The NY Times have all run stories about the historic flip. Coming after a brutal shutout across the house, senate, and presidency in November, the democratic victory has been a much-needed morale boost for democrats around the country. New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) hailed the win on X, writing “This is how it’s done. Run everywhere. Run down ballot…Great Job PA!” PA Governor Josh Shapiro posted on X that Lancaster County has “rejected extremism” and “chosen a better way forward” according to The NY Times. 

What’s Malone’s winning strategy? Kindness. In a post-victory interview with WGAL, Malone said “Brotherly love is Pennsylvania- and that just proved out through today. Kindness over criticism.” Malone’s message starkly contrasts that of The President, who recently posted “Don’t be weak! Don’t be Stupid!” on X.Though Republicans still maintain a 27-23 majority in the state senate, Malone’s win may represent backlash to Trump’s disruptive blitz of executive orders and budget cuts. The true test of Democratic strength in PA will be the 2026 midterms, when 25 state senate seats are up for election according to ballotpedia. Malone too will have to defend his position in 2026, as he is only stepping in to finish Aument’s 4 year term which began in 2022.