Battle for high-profile attorney general's post headlines Pennsylvania primaries

The downballot primary season continues Tuesday in Pennsylvania, where both parties will host closely watching nominating contests for attorney general and will pick their nominees for several key House seats.

No one has released any reliable polling for any notable races, which adds some extra suspense to election night. The polls close at 8 PM ET.

Below you'll find our guide to the top primaries to watch across the Keystone State. To help you follow along, you can find an interactive map from Dave's Redistricting App of Pennsylvania's 17 congressional districts.

You also can find Daily Kos Elections' calculations of the 2020 presidential results for each district here, as well as our geographic descriptions for each seat. And you'll want to bookmark our primary calendar, which includes the dates for primaries in all 50 states.

• PA-AG (D & R) (50-49 Biden): Five Democrats and two Republicans are running for attorney general ahead of what promises to be a competitive general election for this powerful, high-profile post.

The office was last won by Josh Shapiro, who gained a great deal of attention for his many legal battles with Donald Trump, including his efforts to protect the results of Pennsylvania's election results in 2020 from Trump's barrage of baseless lawsuits.

Shapiro rode those successes to the governor's mansion in 2022, winning in a landslide. After his victory, the new chief executive tapped fellow Democrat Michelle Henry to succeed him as attorney general, though she opted against running for a full term. But aware of the office's great power and its ability to serve as a stepping stone, a large field emerged eager to follow in Shapiro's footsteps.

On the Democratic side, former Auditor General Eugene DePasquale is the only candidate who has held statewide office and the only one who hails from outside the Philadelphia area. DePasquale served in the state House in York County in the south-central part of the state before winning a 2012 election for auditor. After term limits prevented him from running again, he challenged GOP Rep. Scott Perry in 2020, losing an expensive race for the 10th District by a 53-47 margin. 

That's not the only part of the state that DePasquale, who was born in Pittsburgh, has ties to. Because candidates in the Keystone State have their county of residence included on the ballot below their names, DePasquale's move back to Pittsburgh means he'll be identified as a denizen of Alleghany County, the second-largest in the state.

State Rep. Jared Solomon, however, has raised considerably more money than DePasquale or any of the other three Democrats. But the Philadelphia legislator seems to believe that DePasquale is his main obstacle: Solomon launched the first negative ads of the contest during the final weekend before Election Day, and his message argues the primary has come "down to" just him and DePasquale. 

Another Democratic aspirant is prosecutor Jack Stollsteimer, who decisively won reelection last year as district attorney in Delaware County, a populous county just outside of Philadelphia. Former Bucks County Solicitor Joe Khan also has held public office in the Philadelphia suburbs, though Khan's job was an appointed one.

That's also the case for Keir Bradford-Gray, who previously served stints as chief public defender for Montgomery County and Philadelphia. But Bradford-Gray is both the only Black candidate and the lone woman in the race, which could help her overcome her fundraising disadvantage.

The GOP primary, meanwhile, is a duel between York County District Attorney Dave Sunday and state Rep. Craig Williams. Sunday has the backing of both the state party and the Republican Attorneys General Association, and he's benefited from support from megadonor Jeff Yass. Williams, by contrast, has pitched himself as the anti-establishment choice, but he's struggled to bring in cash.

• PA-01 (R) (52-47 Biden): Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick faces opposition from the right from anti-abortion activist Mark Houck in a seat that includes all of suburban Bucks County, just north of Philadelphia. Houck has raised little money for his longshot bid, but neither the incumbent nor Democrats are ignoring the challenger. 

Fitzpatrick began running ads in late March labeling his primary foe a "porn addict, con artist, [and] narcissist," though he appears to have spent relatively little on them. True Patriots PA, a super PAC with ties to California Democrats, has also spent $75,000 on mailers accusing Fitzpatrick of being insufficiently loyal to Donald Trump, a move aimed at hurting his standing with GOP primary voters.

The winner will face retired Army pilot Ashley Ehasz, a Democrat who is hoping to avenge her 55-45 loss against Fitzpatrick from last cycle.

• PA-07 (R) (50-49 Biden): Three Republicans are competing to take on Democratic Rep. Susan Wild in the Lehigh Valley, though somewhat surprisingly, none of them have raised much money for their bids to flip this very evenly divided seat.

The best-funded candidate is technology consulting company owner Kevin Dellicker, who is waging his second campaign here. Dellicker came unexpectedly close to winning the GOP nomination here last cycle when he held the national party favorite, businesswoman Lisa Scheller, to a 51-49 victory; Wild went on to defeat Scheller by that same 51-49 margin.

State Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, meanwhile, could stand out as the only elected official in the primary. Mackenzie has also benefited from close to $600,000 in support from several groups, a figure that represents most of the outside spending here. The final candidate is attorney María Montero.

• PA-10 (D) (51-47 Trump): Democrats have a six-way primary to take on one of the most infamous Big Lie promoters in Congress, Republican Rep. Scott Perry, in a central Pennsylvania constituency located in the Harrisburg and York areas. However, only two of them, former local TV news anchor Janelle Stelson and Marine veteran Mike O'Brien, have raised serious cash.

Stelson, who stepped down last year after 27 years working for the local NBC affiliate, likely came into the race as the best-known name. Stelson, however, lives in Lancaster County, which is located outside of the 10th District. While members of Congress do not need to live in the district they represent, the fact that Stelson is identified on the ballot as a Lancaster County resident could be a disadvantage in a tight race.

O'Brien, for his part, has raised more money than Stelson. He's also aired TV ads focused on his military background to argue that, in contrast to Perry, he's defended American values.

The field also includes Harrisburg City Council member Shamaine Daniels, who lost the 2022 general election to Perry 54-46 and has struggled to bring in money for her rematch effort. Three other contenders are also running, but none of them appear to have the resources or name recognition necessary to pull off an upset.

• PA-12 (D) (59-39 Biden): Freshman Rep. Summer Lee, who is one of the most prominent progressives in Congress, faces Edgewood Borough Council member Bhavini Patel in an expensive primary around Pittsburgh.

Patel has argued that the incumbent hasn't done enough to support the Biden administration, and she's also highlighted the fact that Lee is one of the most vocal critics of Israel's government in the House. Moderate PAC, a group partially funded by conservative megadonor Jeff Yass, also has spent over $600,000 to defeat Lee.

The congresswoman, however, has maintained a huge financial advantage throughout the contest. Pro-Israel groups like AIPAC have also stayed out of the race, apparently lacking confidence in Patel's prospects.