Pennsylvania voters reelect Dem lawmaker who died of cancer last month

A deceased Democratic official won reelection in Pennsylvania on Tuesday. Yes, really.

Democrat Tony DeLuca was the longest-serving member of the Pennsylvania state House of Representatives, serving for nearly 40 years. He died last month at age 85 after battling lymphoma.

But that did not stop voters from reelecting him.

In fact, DeLuca dominated his challenger, Queonia "Zarah" Livingston of the Green Party, by more than 70 points. With more than 95% of the vote counted, DeLuca won with 86% of the vote compared to Livingston's 14%.

Despite his death, election officials were not able to remove DeLuca's name from the ballot in time for Election Day, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported. Still, Pennsylvania Democrats celebrated the victory as one that honors DeLuca's legacy.

"While we're incredibly saddened by the loss of Representative Tony DeLuca, we are proud to see the voters to continue to show their confidence in him and his commitment to Democratic values by re-electing him posthumously," the Pennsylvania House Democrats said in a statement.

While it is possible that some voters did not know that DeLuca had passed, most voters likely voted for him over his far-left challenger knowing there would later be a special election to fill the seat.

A date for the special election has not yet been established.

The Pennsylvania House Democrats' press secretary, Nicole Reigelman, said DeLuca's "seat will be filled by a special election, likely in early spring," WTAE-TV reported.

Remembering Tony DeLuca: Pennsylvania state rep. dies at 85www.youtube.com