Houlahan Wins U.S. Congressional 6th District: AP

This story was updated at 9:40 p.m.

PHOENIXVILLE, PA — The Associated Press called incumbent Chrissy Houlahan (D-6th) the winner in Pennsylvania's 6th U.S. Congressional District race against Republican challenger John Emmons on Wednesday afternoon.

Houlhan led by 3-4 percentage points as the counts came in, but through the afternoon pulled ahead to a lead of 7 percentage points.

By 9:30 p.m. Wednesday Houlahan's lead was closer to 9 percentage points. She had 150,713 votes, 54.4 percent, while Emmons had 126,458 votes, 45.6 percent.

The race was close throughout the day as ballots were counted.

The count at 3:45 p.m. showed Houlahan with 53 percent of the vote, and 142,602 votes. Emmons is reported with 46 percent of the vote, and 124,163 votes.

At 11:45 a.m. Wednesday the Pennsylvania county elections website showed Houlahan still leading, but Emmons behind by 3.48 percentage points.

Houlahan at that time had 51.74 percent of the counted votes, a total of 128,792 cast for her.

Emmons at 11:45 a.m. had 48.26 percent of the counted votes, a total of 120,134.

Votes for Independent challenger McHugh were not reported. The vote report said there were also 294 write-in votes.

Pennsylvania's voter information page reported this morning that Chester County had counted 38 percent of mail-in ballots. It said just under 90,000 remain uncounted this morning.

Houlahan is an Air Force veteran who's been serving on the House Armed Services Committee, the Foreign Affairs Committee, the House Small Business Committee. She's held the office since 2019 and early on founded the Servicewomen and Women Veterans Congressional Caucus and the Women in STEM Caucus. She is the first woman ever to represent Pennsylvania's 6th District, which includes large parts of Chester and Berks counties.

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Emmons, her Republican challenger, emphasized his business background and his concerns for the economy and the environment.

Emmons' campaign website quoted him. "Today, the foundations of our country are being attacked and undermined by a large, distant, over-reaching federal bureaucracy and elements in our society with strong anti-American views. So, it's time to take another bold step forward. That’s why I am running for Congress."

Emmons was endorsed by the Chester County Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 11.

"We all want clean air and water, and a clean environment, whether you believe in man-made climate change or not," Emmons campaign statements read.

Houlahan's online bio says she "is the daughter and granddaughter of Holocaust survivors who came to America with nothing. She grew up in a military family. Her father and grandfather flew P3s in the same Navy squadron. She earned her engineering degree from Stanford with an ROTC scholarship that launched her service in the U.S. Air Force and Air Force Reserves, and later earned her M.S. in Technology and Policy from MIT."

Emmons explained the concerns that motivated him to run for office. "In 2007, dismayed by what he saw as a lack of fiscal responsibility in Washington and a wrong direction for the country, Emmons became active in politics, fearlessly calling out both parties for their unwillingness to stand for the principles of our nation’s founding. He founded activist coalitions, served in party leadership, and volunteered for campaigns of candidates he believed in."

In June, Emmons released an ad to "end the lockdown."

Houlahan served in Teach for America as a chemistry teacher in North Philadelphia, and then led a non-profit helping underserved students across America build their literacy skills. She says these experienced formed her concerns in political life for helping everyone succeed.

Emmons grew up on a farm, his father also a factory worker, but began a career in business directly out of college.

His bio says, "Recruited out of college, John Emmons started as a chemical engineer with Armstrong World Industries and rapidly rose to become a plant manager in the company, running one of the focused business units at the Armstrong facility in Lancaster. Following his career at Armstrong, he spent the next 16 years serving as director of operations for Mannington Mills in Salem, NJ.

Since 2015, Emmons has held the role of director of operations for Interface Performance Materials/Lydall based in Lancaster.

"In these roles John has managed hundreds of employees in multiple states and around the world, balancing budgets, meeting critical deadlines, solving problems, and continually improving outcomes," his bio says.

Emmons insists that concern for the environment and a free market economy can coexist. "Look around the world and you'll see that free markets are clean markets. Free markets solve problems," his website states.

Independent candidate John McHugh is also on the 6th District ballot. McHugh, whose motto is "United We Stand," has served as Honey Brook Township Supervisor for the last eight years.

"My commitment is to uphold the Constitution of the United States and live by the words or the Preamble of the U. S. Constitution," McHugh said. He quotes the founding document: "We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

McHugh's father was a World War II veteran, and both his parent school teachers. McHugh spent only about $6,000 on his campaign, according to Open Secrets.

The U.S. House 6th District in Chester and Berks counties includes 734,876 people, as of the last census.

For full coverage of the election in Pennsylvania, go here.