Who's In the Race

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) faces Democrat Bob Harvie in the November 3 general election in Pennsylvania's 1st District. The ballot also includes Independent and Libertarian candidates, making it a multi-candidate race. ​

Fitzpatrick, a Levittown native who has lived in Bucks County for nearly 40 years, served nearly 14½ years as an FBI Supervisory Special Agent, including work on political corruption and counterterrorism, and also worked as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney. He is a licensed Pennsylvania attorney and certified public accountant. Fitzpatrick ran unopposed in the May 19 Republican primary, receiving 100 percent of the vote.

Harvie has served as a Bucks County commissioner since January 2020 and taught social studies for 26 years, including as department chair at Bucks County Technical High School. Harvie won the May 19 Democratic primary. He took about 65 percent of the vote to Simonelli's 35 percent, a margin of 23,928 votes.

What They Stand For

Fitzpatrick has proposed protecting coverage for people with preexisting conditions and lowering prescription-drug costs, according to his campaign website. He's also supported:

  • Eliminating income taxes on Social Security benefits and backing a cost-of-living adjustment that better reflects seniors' expenses,
  • Congressional term limits and a "No Budget, No Pay" approach to fiscal discipline; and
  • A balanced-budget amendment and stronger oversight of federal agencies.

Harvie has proposed restoring and expanding Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, allowing Medicare buy-in at age 55, and lowering prescription-drug costs, according to his campaign website. He also supports:

  • A middle-class tax cut while requiring large corporations and the ultra-wealthy to pay their fair share,
  • Overturning Citizens United and permanently banning corporate PAC contributions,
  • Rolling back Trump's tariffs and raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour; and
  • A moratorium on new data-center development in the community until its effects on utility costs, water and electricity use, and local jobs are assessed.

The Money Behind the Race

Through June 30, Fitzpatrick had raised about $6.7 million and held about $6.4 million in cash, roughly eight times as much as Harvie, who had raised about $2 million and had about $795,000 on hand, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Fitzpatrick's total receipts were more than three times Harvie's, and his cash advantage stood at about $5.6 million.

Outside groups have spent about $30,484 supporting Harvie and about $10,609 opposing him, according to Federal Election Commission outside-spending records; the largest spender in support of Harvie was Seniors Empowering an Effective Democracy (SEED-PAC) at about $17,374, while Defending America PAC, Inc. was the sole group opposing him at about $10,609.

Race Outlook: Ratings and Betting Markets

Cook Political Report rates the race Lean Republican as of Oct. 19; Sabato's Crystal Ball rates it Lean Republican as of Oct. 11; and Inside Elections rates it Lean Republican as of Oct. 2. On Kalshi, traders gave Republicans, whose nominee is Fitzpatrick, a 65% chance of winning the seat as of Oct. 20, while Democrats, whose nominee is Harvie, stood at 35%.

Fitzpatrick has won the district in each of the last two cycles, taking about 56 percent in 2024 and about 55 percent in 2022. His 2024 vote share ran about six percentage points ahead of Donald Trump's Pennsylvania statewide share in the same election. In 2022, Democrats won 9 of Pennsylvania's 17 U.S. House seats, and Republicans won 8. At the presidential level, Donald Trump carried Pennsylvania in 2024 with about 50 percent of the vote.

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