News & Brews January 22, 2025
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With Sunday’s swearing in, GOP leads all three Pa. row offices
With the swearing in of new state Attorney General Dave Sunday yesterday—along with the swearing in of re-elected Treasurer Stacy Garrity and re-elected Auditor General Tim DeFoor—Republicans now hold all three row offices. This past election marked the first time ever that GOP candidates were elected to all three roles. At yesterday’s ceremony, Sunday said, “We absolutely must hold criminals accountable. At the same time, we need to embrace redemption for those who have been held accountable and seek to better their lives.” Gov. Shapiro, speaking at the event, praised Sunday, stating, “Pennsylvania needs someone like Dave who is grounded in integrity and something deeper than just the politics of a particular moment.”
SCOTUS won’t hear NAACP challenge to Pa. election law
Wait, don’t go anywhere. This is a different case from the one I shared yesterday. And a different court, too. The U.S. Supreme Court has denied a request from the Pennsylvania branch of the NAACP (brought by the ACLU on the NAACP’s behalf) to consider its claim that our mail-in ballot law requiring a date on ballots violates the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Special House election scheduled for March 25
Pa. House Speaker Joanna McClinton has set March 25 as the day for the special election to fill the seat of Democrat state Rep. Matt Gergely (Allegheny County), who passed away recently after a medical emergency. This means there will be two special elections on that day, as it’s also the day when voters in Lancaster County will choose a successor to Republican state Sen. Ryan Aument, who resigned to become U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick’s State Director.
Trump reverses Biden’s LNG export pause
The Post-Gazette reports that President Trump has “set in motion the reversal of the Biden administration’s yearlong pause on permits for new liquefied natural gas export facilities.” This reversal “helps pave the way for a potential LNG export terminal near Philadelphia, helping the industry capitalize on Marcellus shale gas without relying as much on the Gulf Coast.” Biden’s halt had been a point of controversy in Pennsylvania and “sent the market a dismaying signal at a time when there’s an ‘incredible American energy opportunity … if we do it right,’” said American Petroleum Institute CEO Mike Sommers.
Voter registration fraud case being referred to state AG
WESA reports that “Berks County District Attorney John T. Adams said Thursday he is coordinating with other counties, including Lancaster, to refer an investigation into fraudulent voter registration forms to the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General. This is the first update on voter fraud allegations in Berks, Lancaster, Monroe and York counties in more than two months.” The public became aware of the issue on October 25, when Lancaster County announced its “elections office had received 2,500 voter registration forms in a single batch earlier that week. A portion of those forms … appeared to include inaccurate or possibly fraudulent information….”