Pennsylvania's 6th congressional district

Pennsylvania's 6th congressional district
Current Representative		Jim Gerlach (R–Chester Springs)
Distribution	85.78% urban, 14.22% rural
Population (2000)	646,221
Median income	$55,611
Ethnicity	87.9% White, 6.8% Black, 2.1% Asian, 3.7% Hispanic, 0.1% Native American, 0.2% other
Cook PVI	D+4

Pennsylvania's 6th Congressional District was substantially redrawn in 2002. Its strange shape brought charges of gerrymandering by Democrats who argued it "looms like a dragon descending on Philadelphia from the west, splitting up towns and communities throughout Montgomery and Berks Counties." The combination of very affluent suburban areas of Philadelphia and sparsely populated rural areas was possibly designed to capture Republican voters, but changes in voting patterns in southeastern Pennsylvania has made the District much more competitive. The District has a Cook Partisan Voting Index score of D+4.

Elections

The current Representative from the District is attorney Jim Gerlach, a Republican. He has served as the District's Representative since 2003. In 2004 and 2006, Gerlach won re-election against fellow attorney and now Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas Judge Lois Murphy. In 2008, he successfully ran for re-election against businessman and veteran Bob Roggio. In the 2010 2010 General Election, Gerlach defeated physician and Iraq War veteran Manan Trivedi, the Democratic nominee.

Geography

The district includes parts of Montgomery County, Chester County, Berks County and Lehigh County. The largest cities in the district are Reading and Norristown.

The following communities are all or partly in the sixth district:

Berks County

Cities: Reading: Wards: 1, 3 (Division 2), 9 (Division 5) Wards: 13 (Division 4 and 5), 14 (Divisions 1,5 and 6) Wards: 16 – 18, and 19 (Division 1)

Townships: Amity, Brecknock, Caernarvon, Colebrookdale, Cumru, District, Douglass, Earl District 2, Exeter, Hereford District 1, Longswamp, Lower Alsace, Maxatawny, Muhlenberg Districts 1 and 4, Robeson, South Heidelberg Precinct 2, Spring District 1, Union and Washington

Boroughs: Adamstown, Bally, Bechtelsville, Birdsboro, Boyertown, Kenhorst, Kutztown, Mohnton, Mount Penn, New Morgan, Shillington, Sinking Spring, St. Lawrence, Topton, West Lawn, West Reading, Womelsdorf, Wyomissing, and Wyomissing Hills

Chester County

Cities: Coatesville

Townships: Caln, Charlestown, East Bradford Districts North and South (Division 2), East Brandywine, East Caln, East Coventry, East Nantmeal, East Pikeland, East Vincent, East Whiteland, Easttown, Honey Brook, North Coventry, Pocopson, Sadsbury, Schuylkill, South Coventry, Tredyffrin, Upper Uwchlan, Uwchlan, Valley, Wallace, Warwick, West Bradford, West Brandywine, West Caln, West Nantmeal, West Pikeland, West Sadsbury, West Vincent and West Whiteland

Boroughs: Atglen, Downingtown, Elverson, Honey Brook, Modena, Phoenixville Wards East (Divisions 2 and 3), Middle, North and West, South Coatesville and Spring City

Lehigh County

Townships: Upper Macungie District 3

Montgomery County

Townships: East Norriton, Limerick, Lower Merion, Perkiomen, Plymouth Districts 1, 3 (Precinct 2), and 4, Skippack. Whitemarsh Districts W1 and W2, Whitpain District 8 and Worcester.

Boroughs: Collegeville, Conshohocken District 1, Narberth, Norristown, Pottstown and Trappe

List of representatives

1791-1793: One seat

District created in 1791 from Pennsylvania's At-large congressional district

Representative	Party	Years	District home	Note
Andrew Gregg	Anti-Administration	March 4, 1791 - March 3, 1793		Redistricted to At-large district

District redistricted in 1793 to Pennsylvania's At-large congressional district

1795-1813: One seat

District created in 1795 from Pennsylvania's At-large congressional district

Representative	Party	Years	District home	Note
Samuel Maclay	Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1795 - March 3, 1797
John Andre Hanna	Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1797 - March 3, 1803		Moved to the 4th district
John Stewart	Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1803 - March 3, 1805		Moved from the 8th district
James Kelly	Federalist	March 4, 1805 - March 3, 1809
William Crawford	Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1809 - March 3, 1813		Moved to the 5th district

1813-1823: Two seats

Seat A

Representative	Party	Years	District home	Note
Samuel D. Ingham	Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1813 – July 6, 1818		Resigned
Vacant		July 7, 1818 – October 12, 1818
Samuel Moore	Democratic-Republican	October 13, 1818 – May 20, 1822		Resigned
Vacant		May 21, 1822 – October 7, 1822
Samuel D. Ingham	Democratic-Republican	October 8, 1822 – March 3, 1823		Redistricted to the 8th district

Seat B

Representative	Party	Years	District home	Note
Robert Brown	Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1813 – March 3, 1815		Redistricted from the 2nd district, Not a candidate for renomination
John Ross	Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1815 – February 24, 1818		Resigned to become president judge of the seventh judicial district of Pennsylvania
Vacant		February 24, 1818 – October 12, 1818
Thomas Jones Rogers	Democratic-Republican	March 3, 1818 – March 3, 1823		Redistricted to the 8th district

1823 – present: One seat

Representative	Party	Years	District home	Note
Robert Harris	Jackson Democratic-Republican	March 4, 1823 – March 3, 1825
	Jacksonian	March 4, 1825 – March 3, 1827
Innis Green	Jacksonian	March 4, 1827 – March 3, 1831
John C. Bucher	Jacksonian	March 4, 1831 – March 3, 1833
Robert Ramsey	Jacksonian	March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1835		Retired
Mathias Morris	Anti-Jacksonian	March 4, 1835 – March 3, 1837
	Whig	March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1839		Lost reelection
John Davis	Democratic	March 4, 1839 –March 3, 1841	Davisville	Lost reelection
Robert Ramsey	Whig	March 4, 1841 – March 3, 1843		Retired
Michael H. Jenks	Whig	March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1845	Newtown	Lost reelection
Jacob Erdman	Democratic	March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1847	Coopersburg	Lost reelection
John Westbrook Hornbeck	Whig	March 4, 1847 – January 16, 1848	Allentown	Died
Vacant		January 17, 1848 – March 5, 1848
Samuel A. Bridges	Democratic	March 6, 1848 – March 3, 1849		Retired
Thomas Ross	Democratic	March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1853
William Everhart	Whig	March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855
John Hickman	Democratic	March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1859
	Anti-Lecompton Democrat	March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861
	Republican	March 4, 1861 – March 3, 1863
John D. Stiles	Democratic	March 4, 1863 –March 3, 1865
Benjamin M. Boyer	Democratic	March 4, 1865 – March 3, 1869		Retired
John D. Stiles	Democratic	March 4, 1869 – March 3, 1871		Redistricted from the 7th district Retired
Ephraim L. Acker	Democratic	March 4, 1871 – March 3, 1873		Lost reelection
James S. Biery	Republican	March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875		Retired
Washington Townsend	Republican	March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877		Redistricted from the 7th district Retired
William Ward	Republican	March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1883		Retired
James B. Everhart	Republican	March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1887		Lost renomination
Smedley Darlington	Republican	March 4, 1887 – March 3, 1891	West Chester	Retired
John B. Robinson	Republican	March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1897		Lost reelection
Thomas S. Butler	Independent Republican	March 4, 1897 – March 3, 1899		Joined the Republican Party
	Republican	March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1903		Redistricted to the 7th district
George D. McCreary	Republican	March 4, 1903 – March 3, 1913		Retired
J. Washington Logue	Democratic	March 4, 1913 – March 4, 1915		Lost reelection
George P. Darrow	Republican	March 4, 1915 – March 3, 1923		Redistricted to the 7th district
George A. Welsh	Republican	March 4, 1923 – May 31, 1932		Resigned to become a district court judge
Vacant		May 31, 1932 – November 8, 1932
Robert L. Davis	Republican	November 8, 1932 – March 3, 1933
Edward L. Stokes	Republican	March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1935		Redistricted from the 2nd district, Retired to run for Governor
Michael J. Stack	Democratic	January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1939	Philadelphia	Lost renomination, and lost reelection under a different Party
Francis J. Myers	Democratic	January 3, 1939 – January 3, 1945
Herbert J. McGlinchey	Democratic	January 3, 1945 – January 3, 1947		Lost reelection
Hugh Scott	Republican	January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1959		Retired to run for United States Senator
Herman Toll	Democratic	January 3, 1959 – January 3, 1963		Redistricted to the 4th district
George M. Rhodes	Democratic	January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1969	Reading	Redistricted from the 14th district, Retired
Gus Yatron	Democratic	January 3, 1969 – January 3, 1993	Reading	Retired
Tim Holden	Democratic	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2003	St. Clair	Redistricted to the Pennsylvania's 17th congressional district
Jim Gerlach	Republican	January 3, 2003 – present	West Pikeland Township, Chester County	Incumbent

References

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present