A Montgomery County Democratic Committee leader has set his sights on unseating a Republican state senator in the suburbs — part of a larger effort by Pennsylvania Democrats to flip the state Senate for the first time in 31 years.
Chris Thomas, the former executive director of the Montgomery County Democratic Committee, who left his role at the end of November to run for Senate, launched his bid on Wednesday to challenge State Sen. Tracy Pennycuick, a first-term senator representing parts of Montgomery and Berks Counties.
Thomas, 29, is also an Upper Frederick Township volunteer firefighter and taught in a Philadelphia public school for a year prior to his jump into politics. His campaign is focused on increasing public school funding, finding a new funding stream for mass transit, and making Pennsylvania more affordable for working people.
Thomas announced his campaign with dozens of endorsements from state and local elected officials, including five sitting senators from the Philadelphia suburbs. He also secured the endorsement of House Majority Leader Matt Bradford (D., Montgomery), another driving force behind the Democratic efforts to flip the state Senate in the 2026 midterm election in attempts to control all three branches of Pennsylvania’s government.
Pennsylvania is one of few divided legislatures in the country, where Democrats hold a narrow majority in the state House, 102-101, and Republicans control the Senate, 27-23.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, and House Democrats frequently butt heads with GOP Senate leaders. By flipping two seats next November, Democrats would tie the chamber 25-25 and Democratic Lt. Gov. Austin Davis would act as a tiebreaker. But Democrats are targeting four GOP-held seats, three of which are in the Philadelphia suburbs, in hopes of gaining control in the upper chamber for the first time in 31 years.
The GOP-controlled state Senate has been a thorn in the side of Shapiro and House Democrats, as the more conservative members of the GOP Senate caucus have objected to most spending increases and rejected top Democratic priorities, like a long-term revenue source for mass transit. The state budget, passed in November, was 135 days late, requiring school districts, counties, and social service providers to take out loans or lay off staff to continue operating during the monthslong standoff.
Mirroring national efforts to win control of congressional seats, Pennsylvania Democrats are targeting GOP-held districts that President Donald Trump won in 2024 but Shapiro carried in 2022. With Pennsylvania’s popular first-term governor and potential 2028 contender back at the top of the ticket — and a methodical, behind-the-scenes effort by Shapiro to orchestrate a decisive year for Democrats in 2026 — Democrats see it as possible this time around.
Thomas’ first order of business if he is elected to Harrisburg and Democrats flip the chamber: electing Democratic floor leaders in the chamber.
“No meaningful legislation moves in Harrisburg unless we fix who’s in charge, and right now Sen. Pennycuick is supporting a Senate leadership that’s failed working people,” Thomas said.
Pennycuick said she “welcomes this campaign as an opportunity” to talk about the successes she has achieved while serving in the state Senate, such as her support for public education funding, reducing overreaching regulations, and her bipartisan proposal to create safeguards around artificial intelligence.
Kofi Osei, a Towamencin Township supervisor and Democrat, has also announced his bid for Senate District 24, which stretches along the northwestern parts of Montgomery County and into parts of Berks County.
The state Senate Democratic Campaign Committee does not endorse candidates in a primary election, and will support whoever wins the Democratic nomination in Pennsylvania’s May 19 primary. However, State Sen. Vincent Hughes (D., Philadelphia), who chairs the SDCC, said Thomas’ candidacy is “the right time and the right moment.”
“I’m really excited about having a young person in there, generating young people and getting young people motivated,” Hughes added.
The state Senate Republican Campaign Committee, meanwhile, is fundraising off Democrats’ efforts to flip the state’s upper chamber, warning voters that Democratic special interest group dollars are already pouring in.
“State Democrats have made it clear their goal is to have a blue trifecta in Pennsylvania in 2026,” the SRCC wrote in a fundraising email Tuesday. “They know Senate Republicans are the last line of defense against Josh Shapiro and PA House Democrats far-left agenda.”
Thomas was a public school teacher for one year at the Northeast Community Propel Academy, teaching seventh-grade math and science. He comes from a family of educators, he said, but quickly realized he needed to get more involved to improve the education system and government services to better serve these students. He made the jump to politics to try to make change.
“I was sitting there, trying to feed my kids in the morning to make sure they had full stomachs to learn, having supplies to make sure they’re fully equipped for the day,” Thomas added. “I saw a system that wasn’t working for our students.”
If elected, Thomas would be Pennsylvania’s youngest sitting state senator, and would join State Sen. Joe Picozzi (R., Philadelphia), 30, as part of a new generation of leaders hoping to shape the state’s future.
“Our generation has grown up during economic crashes, school shootings, endless wars, and now we’re watching our parents and grandparents struggle to retire with dignity,” Thomas said.
