News & Brews October 10, 2025
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Some counties issued duplicate mail-in ballots
Votebeat reports, “A handful of Pennsylvania counties mistakenly issued duplicate mail ballots to a few of their voters in recent weeks.” (And by “a few,” Votebeat means dozens.) Meanwhile, “state and county officials gave different explanations” for the mistakes. The election director for Luzerne County, for example, said the problem was with the state’s election system. The state, meanwhile, said the problem was at least in part the fault of counties. “Both county and state officials stressed that the duplicate ballots have been canceled, and could not be cast or counted.”
How is Shapiro really doing on permitting reform?
Gov. Shapiro likes to claim permitting reform as a victory, but not all businesses agree. As Commonwealth Foundation Senior Fellow Gordon Tomb explains, while some permits have sped up, “the impact of … [the] reform remains selective at best.” For example, “In northwestern Pennsylvania, the fruits of permit reform have yet to be realized in the conventional oil and gas industry.” And per Tyler Martin, environmental care coordinator for Cameron Energy in Warren County, “The Pennsylvania permitting process has not improved at all for conventional oil and gas operators.” Tomb concludes that instead of selective reform, “Pennsylvania businesses need an efficient and predictable regulatory environment—one that genuinely moves at the speed of business.”
New college ratings—with a twist
We’re used to seeing college ratings based on factors like how many graduates get a job, average acceptance rates, programs offered, and more. But a new ratings guide from the conservative Heritage Foundation is different. In this guide, current and former students at the higher-rated colleges and universities “had better outcomes related to family, faith, and community. They exhibited stronger moral judgment. They demonstrated higher levels of political tolerance and lower levels of antisemitism. And they reported greater personal well-being.” Click here for the report or here for a sortable database of the results.
Shapiro joins anti-Trump lawsuit
Gov. Shapiro likes to sue President Trump. In fact, he’s sued the president more times than we can count. This week, Shapiro joined a lawsuit challenging Trump’s use of the National Guard in U.S. cities. The Inquirer reports, “Shapiro signed on as a friend of the court in the lawsuit — meaning that while Pennsylvania is not a plaintiff, his office is showing its support for the legal action.” The story adds, “No plan has been announced to deploy the Guard in Pennsylvania.”
Survey: 1 in 3 Pa. voters has no retirement savings
The Post-Gazette reports that per a survey, “More than half of all Pennsylvania voters are headed toward retirement with less than $50,000 in savings — and a third have nothing set aside at all.” The topic will be the subject of an event next week in Pittsburgh (and live-streamed), hosted by BlackRock, which conducted the survey. “BlackRock and Punchbowl News are presenting a Pop-Up Conversation with U.S. Sen. David McCormick at 9 a.m. Tuesday to discuss retirement and economic security. That conversation will be followed by a fireside chat with Joe DeVico, BlackRock’s head of the America’s client business, and Pittsburgh Fire Fighters union president Ralph Sicuro.” More info is available here.