Erin McClelland defeats State Rep. Ryan Bizzarro for Pa. treasurer in surprising Democratic primary upset win

Erin McClelland scored an upset win in the Democratic primary for state treasurer, defeating the party-backed candidate, State Rep. Ryan Bizzarro (D., Erie).

McClelland, 49, won the Tuesday contest despite being outraised 5-1 by her opponent. Bizzarro, 38, also had the advantage of dozens of endorsements from advocacy organizations across the state and the support of former Treasurer Joe Torsella — all of which she bucked in her victory.

McClelland said she was stunned, but knew she had offered the right, policy-focused message to voters.

”The only endorsement that matters is the one on election day,” McClelland told The Inquirer.

Bizzarro focused much of his campaign on Republican incumbent Treasurer Stacy Garrity and her support for former President Donald Trump.

But voters, McClelland said, sought to know how the next treasurer would run the office.

”We have an electorate that is very, very fatigued on being motivated by rage,” McClelland said. “They’re looking for all their elected officials to just do their jobs.”

A resident of the Pittsburgh suburbs, McClelland has worked in mental health and substance-abuse treatment, most recently for the Allegheny County Department of Human Services. She argued that her experience prepared her to manage Pennsylvania’s finances and pledged not to invest the state’s pension funds in foreign holdings.

McClelland will be one of few women on the top of the ticket in November, and she believes her win can be credited to women voters across the state.

”This is a really important statement from the voters about the voice of women,” she said. “We talk about how we want their votes, but it’s really important to have their voice.”

In a statement, Bizzarro said his commitment to Pennsylvania “remains undiminished” and he will continue his work as a state representative. He won the Democratic primary election for his state House seat in an uncontested primary Tuesday.

“While the results were not what I expected or hoped for, I respect the voters’ choice,” Bizzarro added.

McClelland previously unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House in Southwestern Pennsylvania in 2014 and 2016 against former Republican U.S. Rep. Keith Rothfus. She also dropped out of the primary elections for U.S. House in 2018 and the Allegheny County executive race in 2023.

McClelland now faces a competitive general election against Republican incumbent Garrity. Garrity beat Torsella in an upset in 2020, marking the first time in nearly 20 years that a Republican bested an incumbent Democratic state row office-holder.

In a statement, Garrity‘s campaign called McClelland a “perennial candidate in search of a spot on the public payroll” and said her ideas for the treasurer’s office are “weird at best.”

”Erin’s biggest political asset was that she was running against Ryan Bizzarro,“ the campaign added. “Now, her biggest political liability is that she’s running against an incumbent with a proven record of accomplishment.”

Staff writers Jeff Gammage and Jake Blumgart contributed to this article.