1986Final results
1986 election for Pennsylvania's 15th District
U.S. House · Pennsylvania
Donald Ritter (R) won with 56.8% of the vote, defeating Joe Simonetta (D) by 13.5 points.
Donald RitterRepublican · winner
56.8%74,829
Joe SimonettaDemocrat
43.2%56,972
131,801 votes
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1986
Races before and after
Source: Past results: 99chambers results archive (MEDSL, Klarner, state election offices)
Money in this race
Each line compares the two campaigns on one scale.
Joe SimonettaDonald Ritter
$51.7K
Raised by the campaign
$439.7K
$51.6K
Spent by the campaign
$440.4K
$19
Cash on hand
$35.5K
Campaign money: FEC, through Dec 31, 1986.
Source: FEC campaign filingsUpdated Dec 31, 1986