DV Journal

State Sen. Scott Martin jumped into the crowded race for Pennsylvania governor on Saturday. After a Facebook announcement, Martin took reporters’ questions via Zoom.

Asked what “secret sauce” he brings to the race that the other candidates in the GOP primary do not the Lancaster County Republican said he has been traveling the state and talking to voters for the last six months and wants to make “life easier for every Pennsylvanian.” He added that, as a former county commissioner who reduced the county debt by $40 million and state senator with 27 bills passed into law, he knows how to “make government work.”

“As a young athlete I learned the basics, put in the work, got better, and I became a state and national wrestling champion and NCAA All-American in football,” Martin said. “As a small business owner, I’ve put in the hours and the sweat to grow a company and hire other companies – all of that work creates jobs and grows the economy. As a senator, I helped author the legislation that resulted in the constitutional amendment that helps restore the balance of power to state government.”

Elected to the state Senate in 2016, Martin chairs the Education Committee and also sits on the Appropriations, Environmental Resources & Energy, and Judiciary committees.

“One size doesn’t fit all,” Martin said about education, where he favors giving parents a choice for their children’s schooling. For higher education, Martin noted, “Pennsylvania has some of the highest costs (for college) in the country” and that results in the “highest debt” for graduates. If elected, he plans to make higher education more affordable and is also favors vocational-technical education as an alternative to a four-year degree for many students. Employers are looking for people with the types of skills taught in technical schools like Lancaster’s Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology, Martin said.

And making sure the workforce has the skills employers need can “turn around the demographics” of people leaving the state to find jobs, which cost Pennsylvania a congressional seat in the last census and decreased the state’s congressional clout.

“We need these folks to stay here,” said Martin.

Asked about Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s unilateral move to take the state into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a multi-state carbon-trading plan that will likely lead to higher energy costs, Martin said he would end that membership.

He pointed to Glen Younkin, the newly-elected Republican governor of Virginia, who has promised to take his state out of RGGI.  And unlike some other states involved in RGGI, Pennsylvania is “an energy powerhouse” that the PJM grid relies on, Martin noted. RGGI would decimate the energy sector causing Pennsylvania to lose those “family-sustaining” jobs to neighboring states like West Virginia, as well as residents and businesses seeing energy costs rise 18 percent, said Martin, who voted against RGGI in September.

On the campaign trail, Martin said people he has talked with are interested in local rather than national issues. They are concerned about public safety, education, and “making ends meet,” he said.

Martin pointed to his small business background, saying the state has too many regulations that make it unfriendly to start-up businesses. Martin and his wife, Amber, own Woo-Cat Management LLC, a property management company. Amber Martin is also the Lancaster County treasurer.

For example, when Martin was a county commissioner Lancaster competed and succeeded in the competition to bring in Perdue ArgiBusiness to build a $60 million soybean extraction plant. However, the Department of State “put them through eight years” of intense regulatory scrutiny that nearly cost the county that plant, he said.

He pointed to other examples of state overregulation, such as the U.S. Steel site, where that corporation canceled a $1.5 billion project in May.

The energy sector in Pennsylvania is losing out to West Virginia and the Gulf Coast, he said. Manufacturing in the state is “critically important,” as is the energy to run those factories, he said.

Asked about changes to voting in the state and Act 77, which permitted mail-in ballots, Martin said he would like to see it implemented as passed, with security provisions.

“It should be easy to vote and hard to cheat,” he said. Not fixing the election system “feeds into a lot of folks’ distrust” of it. For example, he cited different counties that used different rules during the 2020 election and the Secretary of State’s “favoritism on grants” as flaws.

Martin said the case that the U.S. Supreme Court recently heard regarding abortion will not change his stance on that issue. He remains staunchly pro-life and wrote a law to protect unborn babies with Down syndrome. And even if Roe v. Wade were to be overturned, that would only send abortion regulation back to the states, he said. Martin is one of seven children and is the father of four.

With Wolf ineligible to serve a third term, the only Democrat running so far is Attorney General Josh Shapiro.

However, a plethora of Republicans is vying for the GOP nomination. They include former U.S. Attorney Bill McSwain; GOP strategist Charlie Gerow; former Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry CEP Guy Ciarrocchi; Dave White, a former Delaware County councilman and business owner; former U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta; Montgomery Commissioner Joe Gale; state Sen. Pro Tempore Jake Corman; Pittsburgh attorney Jason Richey; and surgeon Dr. Nche Zama. And others said to be about to take the plunge include former U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart and state Sen. Doug Mastriano.

“It is unprecedented, but not unexpected,” said Berwood Yost, director of the Floyd Institute for Public Policy and Center for Opinion Research at Franklin & Marshall College. Yost predicted the free-for-all in his May newsletter.

“These open seats are the best ways for ambitious politicians to take the next steps in their political careers,” he said.

“It is really difficult to characterize anyone’s chances in such a crowded contest,” said Yost.  “The more people who run the smaller the share of the vote that is needed to win, so unless someone with overwhelming name recognition and fundraising advantages enters the race I wouldn’t be surprised by any outcome.”

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Senate Pro Tempore Jake Corman said Monday he will not run for another term in the state Senate. Instead he is focusing on his campaign for the Republican nomination for governor.

“I’m all in for the governor’s race,” said Corman, saying that it “never felt right to run a dual campaign” for governor and for the Senate at the same time.

“I’ve served my time,” said Corman. “It’s time for my district to elect someone else.”

Corman is running under the banner “People First” and said he wants to be governor to get things done to help people more people.

Corman is raising money as a gubernatorial candidate and said, “We’re getting a lot of good support and that’s where our attention is focused.”

Corman, 57, who represents Centre, Mifflin, and Juniata counties, is the son of a state senator and has spent 22 years in Pennsylvania politics.

Corman argued he is the person who can get things done, not just winning an election but also being able to work with the legislature to accomplish his goals.

“We need somebody in Harrisburg who can pivot and get things accomplished,” said Corman. “I have a record of getting things done and that’s what’s important.”

Senate Pro Tempore Jake Corman, a Republican who is running for governor in 2022, came to the Nottingham Fire Company in Bensalem Wednesday to speak with first responders.

“Volunteer fire companies save the state billions of dollars,” he said. “The pressure of getting more and more volunteers is difficult. It’s important for me to hear from them what they’re facing, what their challenges are.”

Corman, 57, who represents Centre, Mifflin, and Juniata counties, is the son of a state senator and has spent 22 years in Pennsylvania politics.

“This is not something I wanted to do growing up. I was a journalism major, believe it or not,” Corman told Delaware Valley Journal in a podcast interview. “And I wanted to be in sports broadcasting. And in 1994, my good friend, Rick Santorum, ran for the United States Senate.”

Sen. Jake Corman (center) meets with first responders at the Nottingham Fire Company.

After Santorum won, Corman “got the political bug” and went to work for him as state director in central Pennsylvania.

With the slogan “People First,” Corman is running to get things done to help people.

“I’d like to think I’m the excitement candidate. I’m someone who believes in putting people first. Someone who believes in protecting our freedoms.”

He took some swipes at Democrat incumbent Gov. Tom Wolf, who is term-limited and will not be running again, for his handling of the COVID pandemic.

“He was wrong when at the beginning of the pandemic he shut down our healthcare facilities,” said Corman. That caused many people to forego needed tests like mammograms or have surgeries like hip replacements, according to Corman.

“And I said, ‘Governor, you know, this is a healthcare crisis. Hospitals were full of very smart people who are experts in the healthcare industry.’”

“Our Founding Fathers decided to put the power in the people, and not the government,” he said. “The last 18 months, we’ve watched a lot of our freedoms come, not under attack, but under assault. We had a governor tell us who could go to work and support their families, and who could not. Who could go to school and get educated, and who could not. Who could get healthcare and improve their lives, and who could not. Who could congregate, who could protest in the streets, and who could not.”

Corman quoted Wolf, saying, “’The government will do everything it can to make you feel comfortable.’ When I heard that, it sent a chill up my spine. Because, really, what the governor is saying to you is, ‘We’re going to make you comfortable giving up your civil liberties.’ … Not on my last breath will I ever feel comfortable giving up my civil liberties. Because when you get comfortable giving up your freedoms and your civil liberties, the government is going to get comfortable taking them. And there may come a day when they never come back.”

Corman also accused progressives of attacking the “very people who protect us,” citing Philadelphia’s surging homicide rate with more than 500 deaths this year. That trend, he said, is reflected in other parts of the state and across the country.

“And what did our governor do when all this was going on? He participated in a march and stood in front of a sign that said ‘Blue Lives Murder.’ That’s the type of leadership he chose to provide during this very difficult time. … The people of Pennsylvania don’t support that agenda. They don’t support defunding the police. They don’t support attacking the heroes of our community. I will stand with our men and women in uniform.”

Corman counts jobs and quality education as key parts of his platform.

“Economic security is the key component of family-sustaining jobs, family-sustaining communities,” he said. “You’ve got to have economic security if you’re going to have a successful community. The way you get those good, blue-collar jobs is developing good economic policy which this governor doesn’t want to do.”

“And I’ve led the charge against his policies and created better policies that have created jobs in the energy sector, which has created blue-collar jobs.”

Corman pointed to a new $6 billion natural gas to gasoline plant that will be built in Lucerne County that he supported but Wolf opposed. That plant will create about 4,000 temporary construction jobs and several hundred permanent jobs.

“I want to get things done,” he said. “We can all stand for certain things. We can all be for certain things. But if you don’t accomplish them then, really, what good are you?”

Corman also blasted the progressive Democrats’ push to defund the police.

“The people who live in this community want policing more than anybody,” he said. “If you don’t stand up and say, ‘we need safe streets. We need to support our men and women in uniform,’ then you’re sending out a message that’s it’s not important. The crime that went on in some of our cities and no one prosecuted any of these people …You’re sending a message that what they’re doing is OK.”

Corman added, “We can support our men and women in uniform and still deal with the social concerns that drive some of those values,” he said. “I believe that we can have good energy jobs and still protect our environment. It’s a false choice to say it has to be one or the other. You can do both. You just have to be clever, you have to be creative.”

Education was a big issue driving many parents to the polls in the 2021 election cycle, as parents saw what their children were learning online during the pandemic.

“First of all, we have to be fighting back as a nation, not just a state, as a nation against Washington, D.C. and new Biden administration, sending the FBI out after parents who go to school board meetings and to have voices heard. That’s the most outrageous thing I think I’ve ever heard in my entire career, my entire life that our own country would be trying to silence voices.”

“We have to be encouraging parents to be involved in their children’s education,” he added.

Corman is competing in a large field of GOP candidates, including former U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, Montgomery Commissioner Joe Gale, GOP strategist Charlie Gerow, Chester County Chamber of Business & Industry  CEO Guy Ciarrocchi, Former U.S. Attorney Bill McSwain, former Delaware County Councilmember Dave White, and surgeon Nche Zama.

Attorney General Josh Shapiro is the only announced Democrat in the governor’s race.

Reporter Isaac Avilucea contributed to this article.

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Delaware County guys have a reputation for being outspoken and ready for anything. Those attributes may serve former county Councilman Dave White well, as he elbows his way in the crowded race for the 2022 GOP nomination for governor.

White, 60, is not deterred by the competition.

He says he believes he has the right combination of ideas to appeal to the voters, focusing on jobs, education, and safety.

White, who owns a mechanical, contracting, plumbing and HVAC business that employs 80 to 85 people said he knows about job creation firsthand and has “signed the front side of paychecks and paid good wages.” White got his start as a pipefitter and would like to bring back an emphasis on vocational education as a pathway for many students to obtain high-paying jobs.

Asked about his accomplishments while serving on council, White pointed to the rescue of three refineries—in Marcus Hook, Linwood and Philadelphia—that now process natural gas from the Marcellus Shale in western Pennsylvania.

The council went after state and federal grants to save those refineries, he said. That, in turn, saved thousands of jobs.

“They closed and we got them back up and operational,” said White. “When we got them up and running, there were more jobs there. We were ninth in the state for wage growth.”

The extracting natural gas from the shale formation is “a very, very good opportunity” for Pennsylvanians, he said. “These jobs start at $80,000, $90,000, $100,000.” And that money spreads throughout the economy leading to more jobs in other sectors, as well.

“As long as we have the can-do attitude,” said White, who described himself as “very optimistic.”

“We need to release what Pennsylvania residents can do and we’re going to,” White said.

White also backs the Mariner East 2 pipeline, which some Democrats and environmentalists oppose. Presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee Josh Shapiro has gone after pipeline company Energy Transfer as attorney general. Shapiro recently announced he is pursuing criminal charges against that company with a grand jury presentment.

“I’m a big proponent of it,” White said about the pipeline. “It’s the safest way to transport that gas and it’s being built by good quality men and women.”

White said he’s for energy sources from “all of the above,” including solar and wind power. But natural gas is “clean-burning energy.”

“We have more resources than anywhere in the world except Saudi Arabia,” he said. “It’s an important part of growing this economy in the state.”

“I’m all about the fracking,” said White. “That’s a big part of Pennsylvania’s future.”

White also opposes increasing taxes on the energy industry.

“We need to live within our means,” White said. “I learned that as a business owner.”

White believes in “making sure we fund our police.” He noted there have been more than 400 murders in Philadelphia this year, a record number. “That’s just out of control.”

We need to “respect and honor our police. They can’t do their job unless we respect and fund them,” he said.

White and his wife, Debbie, have been married for 38 years and “still live in the same house” in Ridley Township where they raised their four children. They have three grandchildren.

About 1,600 people came out on Saturday when White announced his campaign for governor. And some of those supporters commented on Facebook.

Joe Matlack said, “If you need anything let me know.” Stephen Fuscellaro said, “Congratulations and good luck, Dave.”

“Good luck, Dave! You can count on our vote,” said Mindy Paolella.

On Monday, White set off on a drive across Pennsylvania to rally support and introduce himself to voters around the state, joining other Republican hopefuls in making that trek.

These include Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry President Guy Ciarrocchi, former U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, former U.S. Attorney Bill McSwain, Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Gale, state Sen. Dan Laughlin, and GOP political analyst Charlie Gerow, who just launched a statewide television ad buy over the weekend, and attorney Jason Richey.

State Sen. Doug Mastriano has launched an exploratory committee and Sen. President Pro Tempore Jake Corman is expected to announce his bid on Thursday.

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