DV Journal

With 90 percent of the votes reported, it appears the Republican candidates have won their races for state treasurer, auditor general, and attorney general.

With Attorney General Michelle Henry not running, Democrat DePasquale and Republican Dave Sunday wrestled for the top job. Sunday, the York County District Attorney touted his experience in law enforcement. DePasquale, formerly the auditor general, noted his skill in running a large state agency. He also noted he had run several investigations ferreting out fraud and abuse.

Sunday carried the day.

“I just called @DaveSunday_ to congratulate him on his victory as Attorney General. Dave worked hard and earned this victory. I also want to thank all of the people who supported our campaign. Your energy and passion will always be with me. Thank you!” DePasquale said on X. 

Incumbent Treasurer Stacy Garrity won a second term.

York District Attorney Dave Sunday

Garrity was challenged by Democrat Erin McClelland, who previously ran for Congress in Allegheny County. McClelland has a background in counseling and previously ran a counseling program. She worked for the Allegheny County Department of Human Services, identifying and eliminating “systematic bias.”

Garrity sparred with McClelland over mistakes in McClelland’s campaign finance reports. McClelland attacked Garrity over investment choices for the state retirement programs. Garrity, however, noted she is one of many board members in charge of those accounts. Garrity also burnished her record of returning lost property to Pennsylvanians and improving a program to help the disabled save.

In a statement, Garrity thanked the people of Pennsylvania for reelecting her  and her supporters for their help.

“Over the past four years, we’ve worked together to safeguard taxpayer dollars, increase transparency in government spending, return almost $1 billion in unclaimed property, and expand programs that help Pennsylvanians save for college and retirement. We have made significant strides in holding Harrisburg accountable, but there’s more work to do. I’m committed to making every dollar count and ensuring that your hard-earned money is managed with the utmost responsibility.

“As we look to the future, I am excited to continue working for you. Together, we will build on our successes and tackle the challenges ahead. Thank you, Pennsylvania, for your trust and support. I am honored to serve as your State Treasurer for another term, and I am ready to continue the work of making our Commonwealth a place of opportunity and prosperity for all.

“On a personal note: the past month has been a difficult one,” Garrity added. “I have kept close to home as my father’s life came to a peaceful close. At 82 he put up a valiant battle against cancer and passed away early Monday morning. As someone wrote long ago: “Whether or not it is clear to you, the universe is unfolding as it should.” Tomorrow, we all get back to the business of making our lives in this world a little better.”

Auditor General Timothy DeFoor started in the inspector general’s office, went to the Attorney General’s Office, then became Dauphin County controller before he was elected auditor general. He is the first African American elected to statewide office in Pennsylvania.

His challenger, Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D-Philadelphia) beat Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley in the primary.

Kenyatta said he’s been involved in six state budgets, chairs the commerce committee, and serves on the banking, finance, and state government committees.

Auditor General Timothy DeFoor

DeFoor and Kenyatta tangled over multiple issues during the campaign with Kenyatta vowing to rebuild the Bureau of School Audits. He also promised to be a more labor-friendly Auditor General. Kenyatta also accused DeFoor of playing politics by putting out a misleading report on Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) about a month before the election. That report suggested PBMs were overbilling the state government for Medicaid prescriptions.

DeFoor suggested Kenyatta was a career politician looking to advance to the next position. Kenyatta was a freshmen state legislator who overperformed in the 2022 U.S. Senate Democratic primary before losing to John Fetterman. He said he’d remain focused on the task at hand to make sure local pension plans are sound and make sure state money is handled correctly on the local level.

The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office has had an unusual amount of turnover since 2016, when then-Attorney General Kathleen Kane was convicted on criminal felony charges and forced to resign.

Solicitor General Bruce Castor then assumed the office as Acting Attorney General until Gov. Tom Wolf nominated Bruce Beemer to serve out Kane’s remaining term.

Josh Shapiro was elected attorney general in 2016, reelected in 2020, then left the office to become governor after the 2022 election, creating yet another vacancy. He appointed Michelle Henry as his successor. Pennsylvania voters will now choose their own top cop in the November 5 general election.

Two men vying for the post, Democrat Eugene DePasquale and Republican Dave Sunday, recently took part in a televised debate, and both men spoke with the DVJournal.

Sunday, now serving his second term as York County district attorney, said public safety is the primary reason he’s in the race.

“If communities aren’t safe, nothing else matters,” said Sunday.

DePasquale, 53, served two terms as auditor general and represented part of York County in the Pennsylvania House from 2007 to 2013. He also ran unsuccessfully for Congress against Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) in 2020.

“Number one, we must make sure we will protect our democracy. We must protect everyone’s right to vote and make sure the vote is counted accurately,” he said.

Eugene DePasquale

DePasquale told DVJournal that while serving as auditor general, he held “bad actors accountable no matter who they are,” and he is “the right fit to be the Pennsylvania attorney general.”

“I have a record of protecting the community, protecting voting rights, protecting reproductive freedom, and doing it in a balanced way that holds anyone who messes up accountable.”

As auditor general, his investigations uncovered over 3,000 untested rape kits and 58,000 unanswered calls to the child abuse hotline.

“I will always protect a woman’s right to choose,” he said during the debate.

He told DVJournal, “I am very concerned about all these scammers trying to scam our seniors. I’m very worried about prescription drug prices and these pharmacy benefit managers…jacking up prescription drug prices.”

Sunday insists the attorney general needs a prosecutorial and criminal law background. Even before he was elected York County District Attorney in 2017, Sunday, 41, a Navy veteran, worked as a prosecutor.

Sunday says his emphasis is not only on putting criminals in jail but finding ways to rehabilitate those who’ve committed minor offenses. He does that through working with community and church groups, as well as mental health and addiction treatment, seeking “accountability and redemption.”

Under his watch in York County, there’s been a 30 percent crime reduction, an 80 percent drop in gang-related gun violence, a 26 percent decline in drug overdoses, and a 75 percent reduction in the homicide rate.

Sunday said he’ll fight to end human trafficking, and he will have “zero tolerance” for fentanyl suppliers.

“Our children are facing a brutal epidemic of fentanyl where 15 Pennsylvanians are killed every day,” said Sunday.  He noted fentanyl is often laced into marijuana and various pills, so someone might not even realize they’d taken it.

During the debate, DePasquale attacked Sunday for “going soft on sexual predators and having failed convictions on the gang rape case.”

Sunday said DePasquale picked a couple of cases to criticize out of the 40,000 his office handled in the last 15 years.

“I’d like to compare those [cases] with my opponent’s, but he’s literally never even prosecuted one,” said Sunday.

“He would need a tutorial on day one on how to find a courtroom, what it means to have an adversarial system, what it means to work through defense attorneys, what it means to advocate in front of a judge, what it does mean to work in front of a jury. Pennsylvanians deserve better. This isn’t about political advancement. This is about public safety.”

Sunday said DePasquale’s investigations as auditor general were civil, not criminal.

“I’m the only one who’s run a complicated state agency. That’s the leadership we’ll need on day one,” said DePasquale.

Both Sunday and DePasquale say they will protect senior citizens from scammers. Sunday noted that using artificial intelligence (AI), scammers have become more sophisticated. He put together a computer forensics team in York to target them. “The average amount of money stolen from a senior is $38,000.”

DePasquale said many scammers call seniors from out of state.

“So you’ve got to work with attorney generals in other states. You’ve got to bring lawsuits, sometimes multistate work, sometimes even with the Justice Department. That’s why I think my experience of already running a complicated state agency and having the ability to put together teams across the state and across the country, I think it’s an asset.”

DePasquale added that when he was auditor general, he “routed out over $2 billion being wasted in Harrisburg.”

“My experience is more in line with what the job of the attorney general is,” said DePasquale.

While campaigning, DePasquale said many people talk about their concerns over abortion rights, “even a lot of suburban Republicans.” DePasquale promised never to prosecute a woman for having an abortion or a doctor for performing one.

Sunday said abortion is legal in Pennsylvania up until six months, and after that, there are exceptions for rape, incest and the mother’s life. Sunday said he would follow the law.

“My opponent, a professional politician, is throwing out words to scare people, like [debunked] Project 2025…There’s no scenario that exists where I would ever prosecute a woman for having an abortion. Period. He’s trying to scare you because he’s never done the job. He’s never been a prosecutor. He’s never even been in a courtroom to try a case. He’s saying things to scare people. I will not do that,” Sunday said.

Also on the ballot are Robert Cowburn (Libertarian), Richard Weiss (Green), Justin Magill (Constitution) and Eric Settle (Forward).

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On April 23, Pennsylvania Republicans — and only registered Republicans — will pick their party’s nominee for attorney general. Two candidates, York County District Attorney Dave Sunday and Delaware Valley state Rep. Craig Williams, hope to get the nod.

The attorney general is arguably the second most powerful state official after the governor. In several recent cases, the Attorney General’s Office became a stepping stone to the governor’s mansion, including for the current governor, Josh Shapiro (D). Former Republican Gov. Tom Corbett also previously served as attorney general.

Attorney Bruce L. Castor Jr., a former Montgomery County DA and county commissioner, is a Republican who served as acting attorney general after Democrat Kathleen Kane resigned following a conviction on perjury charges.

“The attorney general election is important mostly because it is a stepping-stone to the nomination for governor,” said Castor. “Most people think the attorney general is primarily a prosecutor. While that is far from the truth, perception is what matters. That is the only state row office which receives broad public attention.”

State Rep. Craig Williams

Sunday and Williams told DVJournal they are focused on the Attorney General’s Office and have no plans to run for governor.

“I think Pennsylvania is at a crossroads,” said Sunday, who has the endorsement of the state GOP. “If we can’t make our communities safer and healthier for our families and children, nothing else matters.”  Sunday is concerned about the world his third-grade son will grow up in.

Williams said, “I am focused on making Pennsylvania a safe place to live, work, and raise a family.”

And Williams said that he can win the general election over whichever Democrat wins the primary.

“I have the most breadth of experience,” said Williams, who represents parts of Chester and Delaware Counties. “I have run two times in 2020 and 2022 in the state House elections that nobody thought I could win because of the political climate, be it Trump or abortion. I worked my tail off, and I brought a narrative that was winning, which is one of public service, being a community-minded guy, and being a tenacious fighter. And those narratives brought me home to two victories.”

Williams is a former federal prosecutor who served in Colorado and Philadelphia. Williams also served in the Marine Corps for nearly three decades, flew 56 combat missions, was decorated for valor in battle, and retired as a colonel. While in the Marines, he was a prosecutor and worked on the Joint Terrorism Task Force. Williams served as deputy legal counsel to the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the war on terror.

Sunday is a Navy veteran who was deployed to the Persian Gulf and put himself through college and law school while working for UPS. He leads a large office that prosecutes about 9,000 cases annually. Sunday was previously chief deputy prosecutor of litigation. Twice elected district attorney, Sunday said his approach to public safety resulted in a 30 percent decrease in crime during his first term and reductions in the prison population by almost 40 percent since its peak, a reduced supervision caseload. He noted a recent study conducted by Indiana University of Pennsylvania shows offenders in York County have the lowest recidivism rate over five years compared to seven other counties.

“My philosophy of criminal justice is accountability and redemption,” Sunday told DVJournal. A lot of crime

York County District Attorney Dave Sunday

comes from drug addiction and mental illness, he said.

He started the York Opioid Collaborative, working with families, the “faith-based community,” and hospitals to “do everything we can to get people into treatment.”

Williams has used his legislative position to attack crime, including passing a law for a special prosecutor for crime on and near SEPTA and a crime and gun task force. He also led the charge to impeach progressive Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner, whose bail “reforms” and downgrading of gun charges have been blamed for spiking violent crime in the city that spills over to the suburbs.

At their debate, Sunday said he opposes Krasner’s impeachment and would allow the voters to decide the matter.

Sunday’s call for redemption means “emptying jails” and “fewer prison sentences,” Williams said.

Williams pointed out that Sunday was a Democrat until he was 37 and ran for DA in a conservative county, while Williams is a lifelong Republican.

Sunday’s “troubling record on public safety, evidenced by York’s murder rate surpassing Philadelphia’s, casts doubt on the authenticity of his 2013 switch to the Republican Party,” said Mark Campbell, Williams’ campaign manager.

Sunday said he switched from the “blue dog” Democratic party of his working-class family to Republican when he realized the Democrats were no longer in synch with his values. He said he voted for John McCain in 2008.

Castor said he has concerns about the “flexible” scruples of a candidate who changed parties. But “if the ‘party-flipper’ is the party-endorsed candidate, though, (they) can use that as a counterweight. Under these facts, I suspect party-flipping is not a major issue with the party endorsement providing cover.”

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The Pennsylvania Republican Party has endorsed York County District Attorney Dave Sunday for attorney general.

A United States Navy veteran, Sunday put himself through college and law school while working at UPS. Sunday leads an office of prosecutors and detectives who together investigate and prosecute approximately 9,000 criminal cases annually, according to his website.

Sunday won the regional straw polls. Both he and Kat Copeland, the former Delaware County DA and federal prosecutor, were interviewed by party leaders during a virtual meeting Monday evening, where Sunday got the nod.

Sunday was the first Republican to throw his hat into the ring for the attorney general nomination. Previously, Copeland indicated she would not continue in the race if she was not the endorsed candidate.

A third candidate, state Rep. state Rep. Craig Williams, a former federal prosecutor and U.S. Marine Corps combat veteran, plans to compete in the April 23 primary. Williams withdrew from contention for the endorsement over the weekend.

Sunday earned an undergraduate degree in finance from Penn State University in 2002 and graduated from Widener Law School in 2007. During law school, he worked as a legal intern at the United Nations Office of the Secretariat in New York, where he was assigned to the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

After graduation from law school, he worked as a law clerk for Joseph C. Adams, former President Judge of the York County Court of Common Pleas. For the last 15 years, Sunday has been a prosecutor with the York County District Attorney’s Office and, prior to being sworn in as district attorney, served as the chief Deputy prosecutor of litigation.

Sunday said his approach to public safety resulted in a 30 percent decrease in crime during his first term; reductions in the prison population by almost 40 percent since its peak; a reduced supervision caseload; and a recent study conducted by IUP indicates that offenders in York have the lowest recidivism rate over a five-year period as compared to seven other counties. Additionally, since the implementation of York’s Early Termination of Probation Program, only 5 percent of the cases submitted recidivated within two years, resulting in a 95 percent success rate, now serving as a statewide model.

He has tried some 50 felony cases before juries and successfully prosecuted more than 10 of the most high-profile York County murders. Sunday has prosecuted multi-defendant gang murder cases and serves on the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing.

Sunday is married and lives in York County with his wife and son.

“I am thrilled with the experienced team that our State Committee has voted to endorse for the 2024 election,” said Republican Party of Pennsylvania Chairman Lawrence Tabas, in a press release. “This team is committed, qualified, and prepared. We know they will be invaluable assets to citizens of the Commonwealth and the United States when they are elected in November.”

Along with Sunday for Attorney General, the state GOP has endorsed Dave McCormick for U.S. Senate, Treasurer Stacy Garrity, Auditor General Tim DeFoor.

Williams is already throwing punches.

“More than a year ago, the Republican lobbyists of Harrisburg and political establishment of Washington, D.C. picked their candidate for attorney general,” Williams said. “What they did not tell anyone was that they picked a Democrat in Dave Sunday. He runs his office like a progressive Democrat district attorney, rivaling Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner with his progressive policies of not prosecuting, letting people out of jail, and not seeking prison sentences. Sunday has allowed the City of York to become one of the most violent places in the commonwealth. He offers no contrast to the other Democrats in this race.”

John Gower, one of Sunday’s campaign managers, did not comment Monday night.

Williams has hired Mark Campbell, who served as campaign manager for Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2021, to oversee his campaign.

Williams retired from the Marines as a colonel after 28 years of service. During that time, he flew 56 combat missions in the F/A18D during the Gulf War. He was decorated 11 times, including twice for valor in combat.

Williams attended law school while in the Marines and became the chief prosecutor for the largest base in the Marine Corps. He also served as Deputy Legal Counsel to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with an emphasis on ethics and detainee issues in federal court. He later served as a federal prosecutor with the Department of Justice, focusing on gun crime, violent crime, and organized drug distribution cartels. He was also a prosecutor for the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

He represents portions of Delaware and Chester Counties in the state House.

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