Gov. Shapiro Launches Reelection Bid

Gov. Josh Shapiro opened his campaign for a second term Thursday with stops in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

The governor, who is from Montgomery County, shifted his campaign message from “getting sh*t done” to “gotten sh*t done.”

Speaking to several hundred supporters at the Sixth Man Center in Philadelphia, the Democratic governor framed his reelection campaign as a choice between stable progress and “chaos and extremism.”

“We’ve got more stuff to do. We’ve got more people to help, and we got more problems,” Shapiro said. “The choice in this race is clear. Will we continue to do the hard work of bringing people together to get stuff done? Or will we descend into the chaos and extremism that has gripped too many other places across our nation?”

On the first day of his campaign for a second term, Shapiro highlighted his first-term record, citing the addition of 18,000 jobs, several business investment deals, and the rapid rebuilding of a collapsed section of I-95. He also noted the elimination of college degree requirements for 92 percent of state jobs, expanded state police recruitment, and the implementation of universal free breakfast for students.

“We have the only state economy in the Northeast that’s growing,” Shapiro said.

Looking toward a second term, the governor proposed raising the state’s minimum wage to $15 per hour and expanding homeownership assistance. He pledged to protect LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive freedoms, and stated Pennsylvania “will never be a right to work state” under his leadership.

Shapiro was joined by Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, who also announced his reelection bid.

Davis criticized what he called “fear and dysfunction used as a political weapon” in national politics, contrasting it with the Shapiro administration’s focus on “progress over partisanship.”

The governor enters the race with a significant financial advantage, with his campaign reporting $30 million in his campaign account.

According to the campaign, Shapiro’s campaign war chest is the largest ever for a Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate at the start of an election year.

While Shapiro is expected to face little Democratic opposition in the May 19 primary, he is expected to face a general election challenge from Republican State Treasurer Stacy Garrity.

Garrity, who has the state GOP’s endorsement, recently characterized Pennsylvania’s current state as “mediocre.”

“When you have a governor that settles for mediocrity and does nothing to change it, it’s probably time for a new governor,” Garrity said in a social media post, adding that she would side with Pennsylvanians over “Harrisburg elites.”

State Republicans have worked to weaken Shapiro’s image and taken to social media to raised criticism and controversies about the politician, who previously served as a state representative, Montgomery County commissioner, and state attorney general.

The campaign kickoff marks the beginning of what is expected to be a competitive election year in Pennsylvania, a key swing state that often plays a decisive role in national elections.

Shapiro, who polls show is popular in the state, is frequently mentioned as a possible 2028 presidential candidate.

In 2026, Democrats’ goal is larger than just the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg. Shapiro and the state party will be looked to as Democrats work to keep a majority in the Pennsylvania House, take the majority in the state Senate, and flip several U.S. House seats held by Republicans, including the First Congressional District held by Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick.

Republican State Sen. Doug Mastriano, who lost to Shapiro in 2022 and teased a possible run in 2026, announced Wednesday he would not run for governor this year.