Argall wins vacant state Senate seat

With the exception of a few left-wing bloggers who thought the Democrat in the race had a chance, Republican state Rep. David Argall easily won a special election Tuesday to fill the vacant 29th District Pennsylvania Senate seat.

The only surprise was the margin of victory. Argall trounced his Democratic opponent by a margin of nearly 2-1. "The numbers are much better than we had anticipated," Argall told The Pottsville Republican.

The seat was left vacant when incumbent Republican Sen. James Rhoades was killed in a car crash last October. Rhoades won re-election in November, forcing a special election to fill the seat.

Unofficial returns show Argall, who represents the 124th House District, with 62.4 percent of the vote to 37.6 percent for Democrat Stephen Lukach Jr., who is the current Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts.

Argall received 20,786 votes and Lukach finished with 12,551.

Argall is a 13-term state House member and former House Republican Whip. He gave up his leadership post to run for the Senate.

Another special election will be held to replace Argall, who also won re-election last November. That special election will most likely be held during the scheduled primary election on May 19, with party leaders choosing candidates for the ballot.

The 29th District includes parts of Schuylkill, Monroe, Carbon, Lehigh, Berks and Northampton counties.

Argall's victory gives Republicans a solid 30-20 majority in the Pennsylvania Senate.

For more on the special election, check out The Clarke Report, Schuylkill County's best political blog.