DV Journal

On this edition of the Delaware Valley Journal podcast Dave White, a Delaware County businessman and former county council member, talks about why he’s running in the GOP primary for governor. White, a third-generation pipe-fitter, tells DVJ’s News Editor Linda Stein his career path — learning a trade, not attending college — is one Pennsylvania should support.

White also calls out Philadelphia D.A. Larry Krasner, and he pledges to support the state’s energy sector and the jobs it creates.

Hosted by Michael Graham.

In a sense, the 2022 Pennsylvania gubernatorial race began on November 8, 2018, when Governor Tom Wolf won his second term against Scott Wagner. With Wolf term-limited, 2022 will see a new face in the Governor’s Mansion, and Republicans and Democrats have been scrambling to figure out who that should be.

Democrats, for the most part, seem to have their ducks in a row on this one. Pennsylvania’s Attorney General, Josh Shapiro, has been a rising star in the Democratic party for years now, and even before he announced his bid for Governor, he had been essentially running unopposed for the nomination. Shapiro has the advantage of being able to focus entirely on the general election, but his disadvantage is that as the presumptive nominee he has had a target on his back for quite some time.

Republicans, on the other hand, have an abundance of candidates, as gubernatorial hopefuls with a wide range of ideas, philosophies, and backgrounds have thrown their hats into the ring seemingly on a weekly basis. This Wednesday, January 5, will mark the first time all those different ideas and personalities will be tried against one another in real time, as thirteen declared candidates come face-to-face on the debate stage.

Every candidate in the history of democracy would tell you why their election is one of the most important elections ever. Whether this particular election will live up to the hype remains to be seen, but Wednesday’s debate sets the scene for leadership changes that will have a drastic effect on the future of the commonwealth.

This election matters because Pennsylvania has become very used to a highly involved governor. Governor Wolf is on track to issue the most vetoes in Pennsylvania history — and he is not shy about taking executive action either. During the past seven years of Republican legislative control, Pennsylvania has been ruled by warring branches acting as jealous guardians of their power — perhaps to the delight of those worried about the tyranny of faction. But if the state house and senate stay pat, a Republican governor could change that dynamic. Wolf’s vetoes from last month alone include a curriculum transparency bill, and a concealed carry bill.

With Pennsylvania’s population declining to the point where it will lose another congressional seat, many would argue that it is time to break up the stagnation between the legislative and executive offices. A Republican could do that, but in a purple state and against a formidable opponent in Shapiro, it would need to be a Republican with a compelling message and widespread support.

This primary also matters because of the issues. Covid dominated the past election cycle, and the only difference this year is that the disease is presenting slightly different problems. Republicans are generally against mandates, but their tolerance for lockdowns and government stimulus will vary.

Energy is also a contentious topic in the state that produces the second-most gas and electricity in the nation. Huge new national gas plants should bring even more revenue in the coming years. As oil and gas businesses look for welcoming homes, Pennsylvania must decide whether this is an industry it is willing to commit to in the long term.

School choice bills have been flying around the legislature without much hope of getting past Wolf, and a new administration could mean some huge changes on the education front. But Republican plans to make a lasting impact on the Pennsylvania public school system vary dramatically from candidate to candidate, and many plans regarding school choice stray into uncharted waters.

Finally, one of the largest issues the candidates disagree on is philosophy. The old GOP that prioritizes markets and morality is still very much alive in the Keystone State. But the state, and the nation, have seen a rise in the “new right”, characterized by nationalism and populism, which brings a set of issues surrounding big tech and immigration that add a new element to the party dialogue. The philosophy that emerges victorious from the Republican primary will have united enough of the Pennsylvania right-wing in order to win, but will it be the philosophy that can unite the rest of the state?

These issues and more should be on full display on Wednesday night. The debate will take place at 7 pm at Dickinson College, moderated by former State Rep Becky Corbin, PA Chamber Director of Political Engagement Allison Coccia, and yours truly. In the interest of full disclosure, Broad + Liberty is an event sponsor and is proud to partner with the PA Chamber of Business and Industry, the Keystone Free Enterprise Fund, and ProtectPA PAC to bring this program to you.

You can watch the livestream on Wednesday, January 5th, on PCNTV. Immediately following the 7:00 debate, PCN will host a call-in program, with special guests former Congressman Ryan Costello and ColdSpark Founding Partner Mike DeVanney. Expect a clash of ideas, and a great example of the lynchpin of any good republic: civil dialogue.

This article first appeared in Broad + Liberty.

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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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While keyboard warriors clash for online likes and America’s leaders bicker with each other in an “uncivil war,” driving up cable-news ratings while also driving away more moderate voters, Jeff Coleman still believes it’s a beautiful day in his neighborhood of Harrisburg.

The 46-year-old founder of Churchill Strategies and a former Republican member of Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives is fashioning himself as a Mr. Rogers of Republicans in his bid for lieutenant governor, which he announced last month on Facebook.

In many ways, Coleman’s nice-neighbor persona is a throwback to the big-tent GOP that the late President Ronald Reagan embodied, with his 11th commandment “Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican.”

Coleman knows he needs voters of “every political persuasion” to win.

“Politics is so harsh today that we are closing all of the roads back and basically we’re saying, ‘Stay in your silo, your blue silo, I stay in my red silo. I’ll listen to our media sources, and you listen to yours,’ and we make daily judgment calls on people because of their bumper stickers and their preferences,” Coleman told Delaware Valley Journal. “We’re scanning people to find the point of disagreement. Whether they shop at Whole Foods or whether they shop at Walmart. Whether they’re Chick-fil-A people or whether they would dare to go to McDonald’s. Or whether they’re independent coffee owners or Starbucks owners.”

Coleman’s tempered beliefs can be traced to his early beginnings.

The son of parents who were missionaries, he spent his early years living outside Manilla, in the Philippines, where he recalled going to a wet market each morning to get vegetables and meats as he got in touch with his mother’s culture and learned a second language.

The family lived through the People Power Revolution, resulting in the forced exile of dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who was dogged by election-fraud allegations and for violently cracking down on protestors who opposed his regime.

Coleman credited that experience with awakening his appetite for politics.

“The events were amazing because two million Filipinos, in the course of several days, rallied to the side of the new Philippine president. And democracy won,” Coleman said. “The idea of politics was pretty hopeful to me. I thought you could really do anything.”

After returning to the U.S., Coleman settled down in Apollo Borough, an old coal-mining town about 35 miles from Pittsburgh, where his dad led a small Presbyterian church.

He volunteered for his first political campaign at 13, went on to graduate from Liberty University, a longstanding Mecca of conservative politics, and later became a member of his hometown council.

At 25, Coleman was elected to a seat in the Democratic stronghold of the 60th House District, relying on a door-to-door campaign to defeat longtime Democratic incumbent Tim Pesci, who was criticized for running a “condescending” race.

Pesci derisively referred to Coleman as “Jeffy” and called campaign volunteers “the Children from the Corn.”

Politics so consumed Coleman that they were intertwined in all facets of his life. He proposed to his wife the day he was sworn in. Their marriage suffered while he was in office, so he retired ahead of the 2004 election, looking to salvage their relationship.

He later founded the Harrisburg-based Churchill Strategies, a communications and political consulting firm that prides itself on “telling each story with grace and authenticity.”

With his marriage and family life stable, Coleman is dipping his toe back into politics, believing it’s still possible to win with old-fashioned, respectful debate.

“Rebuilding the public square is the only way that a conservative or a progressive is going to get long-term sustained changes on issues we care about,” Coleman said. “If you burn down the public square, and don’t have political opponents but political enemies, there is really no recourse but to take your politics into the streets. And that’s what you see in a banana republic.”

Coleman’s supporters believe he’s a refreshing reprieve from politicians besotted with winning Twitter wars.

“Jeff’s what the Commonwealth needs. He comes to the table with built-in credibility. He’s a guy who has a good heart and will be civil,” said Philly pastor Joe Watkins, one of Coleman’s friends who served as a White House aide to George H.W. Bush and previously ran for Pennsylvania lieutenant governor. “Nobody should mistake his kindness for weakness. It takes great strength to be kind and not be retaliatory.”

For his part, Coleman is focused on a narrow menu of issues that he says are important to Pennsylvanians of all stripes, including restorative criminal justice — naturally, Colemans says, since the lieutenant governor sits on the state’s pardon board — education that gives parents a voice in their children’s experiences, and perhaps above all, sober and competent leadership in times of crisis.

Pennsylvania has one of the nation’s highest rates of incarceration, at 659 per 100,000 people, according to the Prison Policy Initiative. Local school board races have become battlegrounds for many national issues, as Democrats and Republicans slug it out on everything from the teaching of critical race theory to whether students should wear masks and be vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Coleman may come across to some Republicans as too liberal for such beliefs as reforming the criminal justice system to rehabilitate ex-offenders and espousing a softer view on critical race theory as one explanation for “the horrors of racism and consequences of generational poverty.”

But he says civility and compromise are musts if Republicans want to remain relevant.

“Politics amplifies that entire series of questions that are irrelevant when it comes to actually deciding should we pave the road, should we build a store, should we legalize something, should we ban this?” Coleman said. “I have been very careful not to single out any one political figure because when I do that the conversation ends. There’s got to be amnesty for people who voted for Joe Biden. We need Joe Biden voters to come back to the Republican Party, or we don’t win the suburbs. That’s a fact.”

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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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Dr. Mehmet Oz parachuted into a crowded field running for the 2022 Republican nomination for Senate in Pennsylvania.

The famous television doctor, who cut his TV chops with the wildly successful television personality Oprah Winfrey and hosted his own program, “The Dr. Oz Show,” will use those communication skills in his new career–political candidate.

Oz, 61, who now claims Bryn Athyn as his home, lived until recently in northern New Jersey. The cardiothoracic surgeon who invented a heart valve practices at Presbyterian-Columbia Medical Center in New York.

But Oz is no stranger to Pennsylvania. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School and the Wharton School at Penn, after earning his undergraduate degree at Harvard University.

In a campaign video, he said he is running for the seat being vacated by GOP Sen. Pat Toomey as “a conservative who will put America first, one who can reignite our divine spark, bravely fight for freedom and tell it like it is.”

And Oz also cited the COVID-19 pandemic that showed America “our system is broken. We lost too many lives, too many jobs, and too many opportunities because Washington got it wrong. They took away our freedom without making us safer and tried to kill our spirit and our dignity.”

“Dr. Oz now needs to demonstrate to Pennsylvania Republicans that he cares about them and wants to represent them, and the rest of the state, in the U.S. Senate,” said Christopher Nicholas, a veteran Republican strategist based in Harrisburg. “Regardless of party, it’s a hard slog running a statewide race here across our 45,000-plus square miles.”

Professor Berwood A. Yost, director of the Floyd Institute for Public Policy and the Center for Opinion Research at Franklin & Marshall College, agreed Oz will need to convince Pennsylvania voters that his political positions, now mostly unknown, align with theirs.

“Dr. Oz undoubtedly has strong name recognition and, more importantly, personal wealth that he can use to run a competitive campaign,” said Yost.  “I assume that he will be attacked for being a non-resident, which I think can be a real liability among the state’s voters. That said, a large primary field means that any candidate can win with a small portion of the vote, so his name recognition and personal wealth make him viable at this moment.

“In trying to assess his candidacy, there are two main things we just don’t know yet about him,” said Yost. “The first unknown is where he stands politically and how those positions will resonate with Republican primary voters. The second unknown is how he fares as a campaigner. Dr. Oz has never run for office and running a statewide campaign in Pennsylvania isn’t easy.”

Democrats were quick to sharpen their claws.

“We went four years with a deranged TV personality in the White House and it almost brought our democracy to its knees,” said state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D-Philadelphia), who is himself among those running for the Senate. “Pennsylvania and our country damn sure can’t afford six years with a deranged TV personality representing us in the U.S. Senate.”

Dr. Val Arkoosh, chair of the Montgomery County board of commissioners, shared a similar tweet: “We’ve seen what happens when TV personalities gain power & @DrOz is the last thing we need when we face real challenges. I’m Dr. Val Arkoosh and I’m the real doctor running in #PASEN.”

But even before he chose to run for office, Oz faced criticism from those who claim some of the products he’s touted on his TV show have no medicinally effective use and are not backed by research. And several Delaware Valley physicians were skeptical when asked to comment previously on Oz’s potential candidacy.

Oz, whose parents immigrated to America from Turkey, has been married to his wife, Lisa, for 36 years. The couple raised four children, Daphne, Arabella, Zoe, and Oliver, and has four grandchildren. Oz grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, where his father was a thoracic surgeon.

Meanwhile, other Republicans who are vying for the Senate include businessman Jeff Bartos, author Kathy Barnette, and lawyer Sean Gale —all Montgomery County residents. Carla Sands, who served as ambassador to Denmark under President Donald Trump, is also a contender.

And rumored to be waiting in the wings are David McCormick, a hedge fund CEO, and former Chester County Congressman Ryan Costello.

Among the Democratic contenders already in are Lt. Gov.  John Fetterman, U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, and Philadelphia ER Dr.  Kevin Baumlin.

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Carla Sands served as U.S. ambassador to Denmark under President Donald Trump. Now she wants to be Pennsylvania’s next U.S. Senator, and she tells Delaware Valley Journal she’s going up with a $1 million television and digital ad buy beginning Nov. 17 as part of her bid to become the GOP nominee.

In the ad, Sands says she is the one who can stand up to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC).

Sands, who grew up in Camp Hill near Harrisburg, followed her father and grandfather in the chiropractic practice. She married businessman Fred Sands and, after he passed away, ran the business he started, becoming chair and CEO of Vintage Capital Group. Prior to becoming an ambassador, Trump appointed Sands to his Economic Advisory Council.

“As a businesswoman, I have had to go up against some formidable opponents and have shown I know how to hold my own. We need conservatives in Washington with the backbone to stand up to Nancy Pelosi and Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and their radical, socialist agenda,” said Sands. “I’m running for Senate to fight for Pennsylvanians – not to make friends with the swamp. Just like in business, I will take on anyone who stands in the way of my mission. Pelosi and AOC don’t intimidate me.”

In an editorial for DVJournal, Sands contends President Joe Biden is weak on foreign policy issues and that weakness makes the U.S. less safe.

“But now, as America is beset by enemies, we have a president all too eager to cave to our enemies abroad and those destroying our way of life from within. Americans across our country and our soldiers abroad are paying the price for this new leadership in Washington,” Sands wrote.

In a previous editorial, Sands took on the “one size fits all” public education system and advocated for school choice.

“For too long, our school system has operated in a manner that placates unions and is specifically inhibitive of competition. Introducing a competitive factor to how we fund education has the potential to be a major catalyst for change. As your senator, it’s my hope to work toward that change,” Sands wrote.

Incumbent Republican Pat Toomey is retiring. Other Republicans running for the Senate seat include author Sean Parnell, businessman Jeff Bartos, author Kathy Barnette, and lawyer Sean Gale —  all Montgomery County residents.

Democratic contenders include Lt. Gov.  John Fetterman, U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, Montgomery County Commissioner Dr. Val Arkoosh, Philadelphia Dr.  Kevin Baumlin, and state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta.

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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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When Larry Weigand was 13 years old he received the Carnegie Hero Award.

In 1985, Weigand, who was a junior firefighter at the time, saved his playmate, Judy McGrath’s, life.

“The roadway was all blocked off for paving and we were playing in the neighborhood and we were playing in the street that was blocked off, and a drunk driver jumped over the curb and (came at a) high-speed in our direction and she didn’t recognize it was coming. And I did. So I, I ran out and I grabbed her,” Weigand told the Delaware Valley Journal.

That incident may have presaged a life in law enforcement and community service.

Weigand, 49,  a Republican running for Delaware County sheriff, is still a firefighter at the Marcus Hook Trainer Fire Department, where he’s a sixth-generation first responder. He spent nearly 23 years with the Chester Police Department before retiring as a detective, and he also served as a part-time officer for Marcus Hook at the same time.

“When I entered in law enforcement, it was the early ’90’s. We were having, not unlike we are seeing right now, a pretty big surge in crime,” Weigand said.

There were record numbers of homicides and shootings then, he said. A federal crime bill allowed cities and towns to hire more police officers, “nearly 100,000 nationwide,” he said. And just like now, crime is crossing over from Philadelphia into the suburbs.

“We have some urban sprawl,” he said.  Delaware County borders on southwest Philadelphia and there is crime that “spills over.”  Chester is very urban, as are parts of Upper Darby, Sharon Hill and Folcroft, while much of Delco has a suburban feel.

“There’s not as many officers out there, yet again,” said Weigand. “And what do we have?   We are having this very large spike in violence and in crime. People like to say ‘gun violence,’ but you know, it’s violence overall that is ruling the day…It’s not just people shooting, there are large fights all over the place, too. And that takes a harsh toll on the community.”

As the sheriff, Weigand would be a voice for law enforcement at County Council and also interact with all 47 police departments in Delaware County. The sheriff’s deputies serve warrants and protect the courts, he said.  Previous sheriffs fielded about 65 deputies.  Right now the department is about 15 deputies short of that now, he said.

While the deputies did get a raise under Sheriff Jerry Sanders, a Democrat who is running for another term, they still do not make as much money as deputies in other counties, he said, so it’s a problem keeping trained deputies onboard.

But the sheriff’s deputy’s jobs can be dangerous if they serve a warrant on someone or try to bring a scofflaw in who resists, he said. The deputies also have to transport prisoners, sometimes to jails in other parts of the state.

However, Delaware County is a unique place, Weigand said of the county he calls home.

He likes that people have “an attitude” here. And that there is everything that anyone could want including top-notch hospitals and “world-class universities.”

Weigand lives in Marcus Hook with his wife, Janette. They have four children: Katelynn 25, Brandon 22, Madison 20, and Aidan 13.