What you need to know about Pennsylvania’s state-level races

While much of the country is preoccupied with the presidential election, there are also important state-level races on the ballot this November.

The Pennsylvania Independent has put together the following guide to state races, including elections for the Legislature, attorney general, auditor general, and treasurer.

This is one of four election guides from the Pennsylvania Independent. The other guides cover federal candidates, voter registration, mail-in ballots, and more. All four are available at pennsylvaniaindependent.com/tag/2024-voter-guide/.

State Legislature

All of Pennsylvania’s 203 House seats and half of its 50 Senate seats are up for election in November.

Currently, Democrats have a one-seat majority in the state House. Since winning the House majority in 2022, Democrats have passed legislation that would protect access to abortion, boost the minimum wage, and mandate background checks for all firearm purchases. That legislation, among a slew of other bills passed by House Democrats, remains in committee in the Republican-led Senate.

Democrats have not held a trifecta — control of the House, Senate and governorship — for 31 years. If they flipped the Senate, Democratic lawmakers told the Pennsylvania Independent, they’d prioritize passing legislation to increase the minimum wage, protect reproductive rights, and provide paid family and medical leave for state residents.

Voters can find who their legislators are by going to https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/findyourlegislator/index.cfm. While all state House districts are on the ballot this year, only state senators in odd-numbered districts will be up for election in November.

To learn more about the legislation that an incumbent lawmaker has supported, you can find web pages for every House member at https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/member_information/mbrList.cfm?body=H&sort=alpha and every senator at https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/member_information/mbrList.cfm?body=S&sort=alpha. The web pages list every bill the lawmaker has signed on to this session under “sponsored legislation” and every legislative memo they’ve supported under “co-sponsorship memoranda.”

State attorney general

Democrat Eugene DePasquale and Republican Dave Sunday are facing off to be the state’s next top prosecutor.

Michelle Henry, the current Democratic attorney general, who was appointed to finish Josh Shapiro’s term after he was elected governor, is not running for reelection.

The state attorney general is the commonwealth’s chief law enforcement officer and is responsible for investigating a wide range of criminal and civil matters, including public corruption, civil rights violations, and drug trafficking.

When Shapiro was attorney general, he repeatedly defeated efforts by Donald Trump and his Republican allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Shapiro also negotiated billions of dollars in settlements with pharmaceuticals manufacturers over their role in the opioid crisis.

DePasquale served in the state House for three terms and as the state auditor general for two terms and now teaches law at the University of Pittsburgh.

In a July interview with the Pennsylvania Independent, DePasquale said one of his top priorities as attorney general would be to ensure funds from the opioid manufacturers settlements go to treatment and prevention programs for residents battling addiction.

Fighting right-wing attacks on democracy, defending the right to abortion, and protecting LGBTQ+ Pennsylvanians are also among DePasquale’s top priorities, he said.

Sunday has served as York County’s district attorney since 2018. He has also worked as the chief deputy prosecutor in the county district attorney’s office and as a law clerk for a York County Common Pleas judge.

Like DePasquale, York cites addressing the opioid epidemic as a top priority.

During a debate in April, Sunday said he would follow the law when it comes to abortion, according to reporting by the Pennsylvania Capital-Star. Abortion is legal through the 23rd week of pregnancy in Pennsylvania, though reproductive rights advocates have warned that could change if Republicans gained control of the state Legislature.

Auditor general

Democratic state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta and incumbent Auditor General Tim DeFoor, a Republican, are running to be the state’s chief fiscal watchdog.

Pennsylvania’s auditor general is responsible for monitoring the spending of public funds. The auditor general’s office audits a wide variety of groups, including commonwealth departments and state-owned universities.

Kenyatta has represented North Philadelphia in the state House since 2018. He was the first openly LGBTQ+ person of color to serve in the General Assembly. Kenyatta has backed legislation supporting a higher minimum wage and gun safety and repealing the state’s ban on same-sex marriage.

Kenyatta’s campaign website says he would crack down on wage theft and union busting, ensure that hospitals are transparent about how they use state funding, and analyze the state’s gun violence reduction policies.

DeFoor was elected Pennsylvania’s auditor general in 2020, when he defeated Democrat Nina Ahmad. He is the state’s first Black auditor general.

In 2021, DeFoor refused to say that the results of the 2020 election were accurate, with the exception of those of his own race, according to reporting by Spotlight PA. He has since changed his position and recently told WHYY that the 2020 election was fair. DeFoor’s refusal to say so in 2021 came as former President Donald Trump and other Republicans repeated the lie that the 2020 election was stolen.

While in office, DeFoor has audited municipal pension plans and volunteer firefighters’ relief associations. One of DeFoor’s top priorities for a second term is cutting “wasteful government spending,” according to his campaign website.

Treasurer

Democrat Erin McClelland and Republican incumbent Stacy Garrity are running to fill the position of state treasurer.

The state treasurer oversees more than $150 billion in state funds and is responsible for paying commonwealth workers and contracts.

Garrity has faced criticism from opponents for participating in an election denial rally one day before the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection by Trump supporters at the U.S. Capitol. Garrity has repeatedly spoken in favor of Trump at various rallies, Republican events and on social media. She has also been vocal on social media about her anti-abortion views and applauded the U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.

On her campaign website, Garrity said that if she were reelected, she would expand a retirement savings program for Pennsylvanians who are not currently covered by pensions.

McClelland’ has worked as a substance abuse and mental health counselor. From 2015 through 2024, she worked as a project manager for the Allegheny County Department of Human Services.

McClelland ran for Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District twice; she lost both times. In 2022, she launched a campaign for Allegheny County executive. She later dropped out of the race.

On her website, McClelland’s campaign focuses on fighting pension privatization and strengthening oversight of the state’s supply chain.