HARRISBURG, Pa. (ErieNewsNow) - For the third time this year, a special election will determine which party controls the Pennsylvania House. 

Voters in the 21st House District have until 8:00p.m. this evening to cast their ballots in the high-stakes race. The majority is on the line, again, for Democrats, who hope to maintain it as Republicans look to regain control after losing it last fall. 

The Allegheny County race is to fill the vacant seat of former state Rep. Sara Innamorato, who resigned this summer after winning the Democratic primary for Allegheny County Executive. Her resignation left the House at a 101-101 tie. 

Lindsay Powell, a former congressional staffer, is the Democratic candidate looking to replace Innamorato. She’s taking on Republican Erin Connolly Autenreith, a real estate agent and local Republican chairperson. 

The stakes are high for Democrats, who won a majority last November for the first time in over a decade. Experts predict they will succeed in maintaining the 21st District seat, which leans blue. 

“This is a Democratic district. And if they lose this, you know, on a scale of 1 to 10, it would be an 11 in terms of embarrassment,” said Gannon University’s Dr. Jeffrey Bloodworth. "I'm sure the Democrats are not asleep at the wheel, that they're mobilizing. The stakes just couldn't be any more important,” he added. 

Innamorato won the 2022 General Election for the seat with over 60 percent of the vote. The winner of today’s race will complete the remainder of Innamorato’s two-year term and be up for reelection in November 2024.