district state_senate constituency predecessor successor party term_start article_title term_end name
2nd pennsylvania part of philadelphia francis lynch bruce marks democratic november 18 , 1993 william g. stinson
 february 18 , 1994 william g. stinson
william g. stinson

william g. stinson -lrb- born circa 1945 -rrb- is a former democratic member of the pennsylvania state senate .
he was elected to represent the 2nd senatorial district in the pennsylvania senate in a 1993 special election .
however , federal district judge clarence c. newcomer declared him the loser of that election after finding that stinson had engaged in election fraud and ordered stinson 's republican opponent , bruce s. marks , be seated in his stead .
the latter took office on april 28 , 1994 .
the fraud was conducted using absentee ballots , often in the names of deceased people .
the decision was notable because it shifted control of the state senate from the democratic party to the republican party .
the first time such an event had occurred at the order of a federal judge .
