Maps show where Wanda Williams lost support in Harrisburg mayor race as Dan Miller continues campaign
Miller, who stressed he has not switched party affiliation, announced Monday he will campaign on the Republican ticket after earning enough write-in votes for the nomination.
'The way I see it, it's really a run-off between the top two vote getters,' Miller said at his campaign launch.
Close mayoral races seem to be a trend in Harrisburg, as Williams won the 2021 Democratic primary by just 46 votes. While she narrowed her margin of victory this year, she still earned just 35.3% of the vote in a crowded primary.
Miller sees that deficit as proof voters want change; he mentioned it more than 20 times in his campaign announcement.
Voter data shows change has already happened in Harrisburg.
Williams lost only 62 votes between the 2021 primary and the 2025 primary, but where her votes came from differed.
She bled votes in nearly all of the city's western and southern wards. Her biggest loss was in Midtown.
Meanwhile, she gained voters in the city's east side, where she consolidated a lot of her support.
Miller earned more votes in wards where Williams underperformed. It's a statistic he seemed very aware of when choosing to relaunch his campaign from Vernon Street Park in Allison Hill.
He said a resident there felt current city leaders overlooked the neighborhood.
'I can't think of a better way to say to Allison Hill, 'I see you,'' Miller said.
Janelle Stelson changes voter registration to Cumberland County
At the announcement, he scoffed at a remark that he's the 'Midtown candidate,' noting he never lived or worked in the neighborhood. Still, voters there were five-times more likely to vote for him than Williams, numbers he hasn't replicated in parts of the city that most went to the incumbent mayor.
'But that doesn't really prohibit me from being a candidate for all of Harrisburg,' Miller said. 'And that's what I plan to be.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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