April 30, 2024
MICHAEL CANDELORI/for PhillyVoice
State Rep. Amen Brown claimed victory Monday in the Democratic primary for Pennsylvania House District 10 over challengers Cass Green and Sajda Blackwell.
Nearly a week after voters cast their ballots, the tight race in the Pennsylvania House's 10th District appeared to reach its conclusion on Monday evening.
The Democratic primary between incumbent state Rep. Amen Brown and his main challenger, progressive activist Cass Green, was too close to call throughout last week. With provisional ballots having been counted, unofficial result tallies show Brown with a 41-vote lead, as of Tuesday morning.
Brown has gained a plurality of 2,987, with Green having 2,946. A third candidate, radio host Sajda Blackwell, has roughly 20% of the vote with 1,495 votes. The Associated Press has not yet called the race.
The Democratic primary effectively decides the race for the seat, because there was not a Republican candidate on the ballot. Brown was running for this third term in Harrisburg.
On Monday, Brown claimed victory, and Green released a statement conceding to Brown. "I am thankful to have secured the opportunity to represent this great district," Brown's statement said, per the Inquirer. "We have made great progress, but there is more work to be done."
On social media, Green thanked the coalition of voters who supported her campaign. "This was truly a people-powered campaign, and we are proud to say that no funds were taken from donors who cause harm to our public institutions," Green's statement read. Her campaign received endorsements from the Working Families Party and several unions.
"Although 42 votes will make a difference in this State House seat, our movement will continue to build a path towards true democracy in Harrisburg, and we'll continue our work toward justice, block by block," the statement continued.
This year's Democratic primary had an identical line-up to the 2022 contest, which had Brown defeating Green and Blackwell with 40% and 183 more votes than Green.
Brown previously ran for Philadelphia mayor last year with a tough-on-crime platform. He received less than 2% of the vote and nearly got kicked off the ballot for failing to properly disclose debts and financial interests. He survived another ballot challenge ahead of his primary election this year.
