The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts.
It is the largest full-time state legislature in the country; the New Hampshire House of Representatives is larger but it only serves part-time.
Representatives must be at least 21 years of age. They must be a United States citizen and a Pennsylvania resident for four years, and a resident of the district they represent one year prior to their election and must reside in that district during their term.
The speakership is the oldest elected statewide office in the commonwealth. Since its first session in 1682âÂÂpresided over by William PennâÂÂover 130 House members have been elevated to the speaker's chair. The House cannot hold an official session in the absence of the speaker or their designated speaker pro tempore. Speaker Leroy Irvis was the first African-American elected speaker of any state legislature in the United States since Reconstruction. Speaker Dennis O'Brien was the only minority-party speaker known in Pennsylvania and only the second known nationwide.
Democrat Joanna McClinton was elected speaker of the House on February 28, 2023, becoming the first female speaker in Pennsylvania.
As of March 24, 2026:
Speaker of the House: Joanna McClinton (D)