Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro launched his bid for the Democratic nomination to the highest post in the state government on Wednesday, Oct. 13. That same day, Shapiro held his first public campaign rally at Pittsburgh’s North Shore Riverfront Park.
Shapiro came to national attention in the wake of the 2020 November general election by defending election integrity within the Keystone State following President Joe Biden’s defeat over the incumbent former president Donald Trump.
During the unveiling of his campaign, Shapiro stated, “There’s too much on the line. We all have a responsibility to show up, to stand up and to fight for what’s right.”
Currently, Shapiro is the only Democrat to declare candidacy for the party’s nomination for the governor.
Current Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf cannot run for reelection, as Pennsylvania governors are restricted to two consecutive terms in office.
On the Republican side, as many as 15 candidates could declare for their party’s nomination to take back the governor’s mansion.
Currently, only nine candidates have officially announced their candidacy for the Republican nomination: former U.S. congressman Lou Barlette, former Chief of Staff to Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley and CEO of Chester County Chamber of Business Guy Ciarrocchi, Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Gale, GOP Strategist and CEO of Quantum Communications Charlie Gerow, former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Bill McSwain, former mayor of Corry, Pa. Jason Monn, attorney Jason Richey, retired UPS executive John Ventre and world-renowned cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Nche Zama.
A GOP poll within the Republican party has shown a majority of likely voters are undecided on who they will vote for in their party’s primary. However, within that poll, former Congressman Lou Barletta holds an early lead among the candidates currently declared.
“Polls don’t motivate me, my four daughters, ten grandchildren and almost 13 million Pennsylvania residents motivate me to fix what’s wrong in the Commonwealth,” Barlette said.
He is not letting his early standings in the polls impact his campaign.
Pennsylvania Republicans are running on several key issues in this race. From election integrity to hardline stances on immigration, Republicans are concerned that another four years of a Democratic governor would be disastrous for the Commonwealth.
The rights to an abortion has been one of the largest foundations on which the Democratic Party of Pennsylvania is building their campaigns. Wolf, a former Planned Parenthood volunteer, has been heralded as a major defender of the right to choose. Democrats are concerned that if a Republican were to win the 2022 gubernatorial race, laws like Texas’s near total ban on abortions would become a reality to Pennsylvania citizens.
Election integrity is also on the mind of the Democratic Party of Pennsylvania. State Republicans are planning to carry out a “forensic audit” on the 2020 General Election within the state. Several state Democrats, including Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Shapiro have filed lawsuits to block personal information of voters from being released to those state Republicans.
With several other high-profile candidates yet to declare in both parties, the race for the new Pennsylvania governor has been declared a “toss-up” by numerous election experts.
The state primary election for each party to choose their nominees is slated for May 17, 2022. Voters will then return to the polls on Nov. 8, 2022, for the pivotal midterm elections, where Pennsylvanian’s will vote for Governor, Lt. Governor, U.S. House of Representative members, an open U.S. Senate seat, State House of Representative members, numerous State Senators and various others.
Until then, voters are encouraged to vote on Nov. 2, 2021 for various local and statewide races.
