News & Brews March 26, 2025
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Dem wins Pa. House race, Senate race looks to be shocker
Surprising no one, Democrat Dan Goughnour defeated Republican Charles Davis in the heavily Democrat 35th state House District in Allegheny County. This means Democrats retain their 102-101 House majority. Per unofficial results, Goughnour won 63% of the vote, to Davis’s 35%. In the 36th state Senate district in Lancaster County, the race is closer than virtually anyone expected, with Democrat James Andrew Malone currently leading Republican Josh Parsons in the heavily Republican district. In fact, Parsons posted that “it appears we will come up a little short.” Should this district flip blue, Republicans would still retain control of the Senate but would be in a more precarious position heading into the 2026 elections, when this seat would once again be up for election. And this would be a huge flip. As PoliticsPA notes, “The district has only had four representatives since 1983 – all Republican – Noah Wenger, Philip Price, Mike Brubaker and Ryan Aument. And the closest race since 2000 was a 23,000-vote victory for Brubaker in 2006.”
Garrity ‘interested’ in running for governor
Republican Pa. state Treasurer Stacy Garrity is often asked if she’s considering running for governor in 2026. In fact, she says she gets the question “every single day.” Speaking to the Delaware Valley Journal recently, she said it “is something I’m interested in.” She added, “The grassroots are, you know, solidly behind me. It’s something that I think about. But at the end of the day, we’ll have to see what the people want.” Known as a hard worker who visits all 67 Pa. counties every year, Garrity holds the record as the top-vote getter for any Pa. statewide office—breaking the record formerly held by Gov. Shapiro.
PSEA sued over personal data theft
Earlier this week I shared the news that the Pennsylvania State Education Association had been hit with a cyberattack in which hackers accessed the personal data of more than half a million individuals. At least three of those individuals have now sued the union, alleging “the union negligently failed to prevent a personal data theft last summer, then waited months to tell them,” WVIA reports. “The three allege the Pennsylvania State Education Association discovered the breach July 6, finished its investigation Feb. 18 and didn’t tell members until March 18, according to their lawsuits filed March 19 in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.”
Pa. Senate hears testimony on self-deleting messaging apps and sunshine law
Separate from the national mess over the messaging app Signal, on Monday, the Pa. Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee heard requests “to consider legislation to address the use of platforms like Signal and Snapchat, to ensure they can’t be used as an end run around the state’s public access laws,” the progressive Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports. “Since its debut in 2008, state courts have interpreted the Right-to-Know Law, which provides access to public records, to accommodate evolution in the way public officials use technology…. But the first consideration when the Office of Open Records hears an appeal by a member of the public is whether the record they’re seeking exists.” And some apps, such as Signal and Snapchat, have self-deleting features.
Fetterman joins McCormick’s book event
The Tribune-Review reports, “Pennsylvania’s U.S. Sens. Dave McCormick and John Fetterman and their wives are holding a public event this weekend in Downtown Pittsburgh where the McCormicks will discuss their new book and participate in a discussion with the Fettermans about mentorship.” You’d think rational people would be fine with politicians from opposing parties—and holding very different views on some issues—having a civil event together. And you’re right, rational people would be fine with it. But unfortunately not everyone is rational, and Fetterman is getting backlash from some in his own party.