Two dead American politicians win local elections

Pennsylvania House of Representatives member Tony Deluca, a Democrat, was up for re-election despite having been dead for a month by the time of the Nov. 8 election, and Tennessee House member Barbara Cooper, a Democrat who died in late October, was up for re-election.

The Democratic Party staff, which helped politicians get elected to the Pennsylvania Legislature, tweeted Wednesday that it was “incredibly saddened by the death of Tony Deluca.” “We are proud that voters continue to show their trust in him and commitment to Democratic values by re-electing him posthumously,” the campaign said in a statement. A special election to fill in for the candidate who died in his 86th year will soon be held in the state.

A similar situation in Tennessee was reported Wednesday by the local Daily Memphian. Cooper, who has since passed away at the age of 93, received 72 percent of the vote in the state legislature to overtake her opponent who was running as an independent. The newspaper notes that Cooper’s seat in the state House of Representatives will remain vacant until a replacement is appointed by Shelby County. The state will then hold a special election.

The local elections were held in the U.S. on November 8, along with a large-scale election to Congress.