In a move that has long been anticipated, Rep. John Galloway (D-Bucks) has resigned his seat in the 140th Legislative District. He won election as a Magisterial District Judge in Falls Township and will assume that position at the start of the year.

Speaker of the House Joanna McClinton (D-Philadelphia/ Delaware) announced that with Galloway’s resignation, a special election to fill his seat will be held on Tuesday, February 13.

Galloway’s departure leaves the Pennsylvania House in familiar territory – Democrats with 101 seats; Republicans with 101 seats. And the chamber is not scheduled to return until mid-March, presumably after the special election has been certified which normally takes three weeks.

In February, there were three specials held in Allegheny County to replace the late Tony DeLuca in the 32nd, Summer Lee in the 34th and Austin Davis in the 35th. In May, Mike Stender was elected in the 108th and Heather Boyd was chosen in the 163rd. Finally, in September, Lindsay Powell won a special to fill the seat in the 21st.

Democrats held a one-seat advantage after winning the three elections in February but lost that edge when Mike Zabel resigned in March. Boyd’s victory pushed the margin back to one, but that was lost when Sara Innamorato resigned in her quest for Allegheny County Executive. Powell restored the 102-101 majority with her triumph, leading again to a deadlock with Galloway’s resignation.

Three Democrats have declared their candidacy to replace Galloway – former Galloway chief of staff Melanie Bidlingmaier, Levittown attorney and Pennsbury School Board member Jim Prokopiak and deputy chair and committee person for the Falls Township Democrats Donna Petrecco.

Former chair of the Falls Township Republican Committee Joan Graves is the lone Republican to declare her candidacy.

The Bucks County Republican Executive Committee meets tonight at 7 p.m. and the topic of a possible candidate is expected to be on the agenda. The Falls Democrats meet on Wednesday at 7 p.m.