Lock Haven, Pennsylvania — Josh Shapiro may be the favorite to win re-election as governor of Pennsylvania, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot at stake for him this year.
Shapiro, who is just getting started on the campaign trail, wants voters to give Democrats control of the state Legislature for the first time in decades. He is pushing his preferred candidates in competitive congressional primaries, trying to shape his party’s slate in the midterm elections that will determine control of Washington.
All of this means that Shapiro, like other potential Democratic presidential candidates, is testing his political capital in ways that could shape his future and the future of the party.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker Successfully He boosted his preferred candidate in his state’s US Senate primary. Maryland Governor Wes Moore to fail To persuade lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional map, while California Governor Gavin Newsom pledged Achieve Redistricting through voter referendum last year.
Shapiro ignored questions — and Republican criticism — about burnishing his credentials to run for the White House.
“The only thing I’m focused on is beating my opponent for governor and helping other Democrats get elected here and sending a clear message to Donald Trump that the chaos, cruelty and corruption that he has engaged in is not something we support here in Pennsylvania,” Shapiro told The Associated Press after speaking to Democrats at a packed coffee shop in the small town of Lock Haven.
Shapiro has never said whether he is interested in running for president. But he says he wants to have a voice in his party’s future. Democrats need to figure out how to “get things done” to improve people’s lives, he said, and he wants to be “part of that conversation.”
Stacey GarrityThe Republican state treasurer, who is running for governor, said Shapiro can’t hide his ambition — and that’s bad for the state.
“We all know he cares more about Pennsylvania Avenue than helping Pennsylvania families,” she said in an interview. “He thinks if he could hand Pennsylvania on a platter to the Democratic Party, maybe they would take a more serious look at him.”
Maybe they do.
Pennsylvania is a hard state to succeed politically, and Democrats across the country are taking notice of Shapiro because of that, said Paul Begala, a Democratic campaign strategist, commentator and top aide to Bill Clinton when he was president.
The election gives Shapiro a chance to show his strength.
“Right now, Democrats, the thing they want most is a winner, and a very close second is a fighter,” Begala said. “This election is an opportunity for him to show that.”
Ahead of this year’s campaign, Shapiro made his mark on the Pennsylvania Democratic Party by urging committee members to elect its hand-picked chairman, and has funneled more than $900,000 so far this election cycle into the organization’s accounts.
He’s on track to break his own statewide fundraising record, telling voters that Pennsylvania is the “center of the political world” in the fight for control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Democrats want to flip four House seats in Pennsylvania. Among Shapiro’s approved candidates Big CognettiMayor of Scranton. Bob Brooks, president of the state firefighters union; and Janelle Stilsona former television news personality who narrowly lost two years ago.
Shapiro has already cut an ad for Brooks, who is in a hotly contested four-way primary for the chance to challenge student US Republican Representative Ryan McKenzie.
Shapiro’s endorsements have not intimidated Democratic challengers.
Ryan CroswellThe former federal prosecutor running against Brooks issued a campaign memo — a veiled reference to the governor — that said Croswell “has no party machine behind him, no network of power brokers, and no services to call upon.”
For his part, Shapiro said, “I’m just focused on trying to uplift good people. And I hope they all win.”
Meanwhile, Republicans have alternatives of their own.
Garrity said the White House asked her for a list of people she wanted to visit in Pennsylvania.
Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance and several Cabinet secretaries have already visited contested congressional districts in the state. Earlier this month, House Speaker Mike Johnson made a fundraising tour across Pennsylvania.
“We know the majority runs through Pennsylvania and the speaker is focused on doing everything he can to help those members defend their seats,” said Greg Steele, a spokesman for Johnson’s political operation.
It is very likely that Johnson will return: Pennsylvania was his last campaign stop before the 2024 election.
Trump and Vance could return as well, and in the meantime, the president is keeping an eye on Pennsylvania. On Tuesday night, he took to social media to take credit for the decision by the owners of two coal-fired power plants not to shut down what he called “a big win for the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which I love.”
As he began his campaign, Shapiro proved his ability to attract people even in the most remote areas of Pennsylvania. Earlier this month, he helped outfit a Democratic ballroom in Central County and a Democratic café in Clinton County.
“I’ve seen new people, and I’ve seen people who haven’t been involved in the party in years,” Clinton County Democratic Party Chairman Bree Brannan said. She added that the crowd included Republicans and independents as well.
With the Democratic “trifecta,” Shapiro tells audiences he can accomplish more, citing legislation that Republicans have stalled. This includes raising Pennsylvania’s minimum wage and expanding legal protections for LGBT residents. He also has a housing affordability plan he’s pushing this year.
Consolidating control of the state Legislature will not be easy. Democrats have a one-seat majority in the state House of Representatives and have not held a state Senate majority in more than three decades.
Few Democrats in the party’s 2028 presidential sights have a chance to demonstrate political muscle and party-building ability in swing states.
This opportunity could help Shapiro prove his mettle when the presidential campaign season begins and potential candidates look for institutional support, endorsements, and donor commitments.
Pumping money into down-ballot races and flipping seats may not help Shapiro with the average voter. But activists, donors and other elected officials care a lot about it, strategists say.
Mike Mikos, a Democratic campaign strategist, said success would strengthen Shapiro’s position at a time when candidates are trying to win the “perception campaign” that they are the stronger candidate.
“It doesn’t guarantee anything,” Mikos said. “But it’s definitely something that needs to be on the table when you’re lining up donors and endorsements and funding chairs, things like that. It’s compelling for them.”
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