HARRISBURG — Republican State Treasurer Stacy Garrity got a formal endorsement from the Pennsylvania GOP this weekend in her bid for the governor’s mansion, bringing her one step closer to facing incumbent Democrat Josh Shapiro next fall.
Garrity was the consensus favorite candidate among Republican insiders even before she announced her candidacy in August. In the days leading up to her official party endorsement, she locked down support from big names across the conservative spectrum, like U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser, a Trump ally, and former Gov. Tom Corbett, who is now an election disinformation opponent.
State Sen. Greg Rothman (R., Cumberland), chair of the state GOP, called Garrity a “proven leader with a record of service, integrity, and results” in a public statement following her endorsement.
“As State Treasurer, Stacy has fought to protect taxpayers, bring accountability to Harrisburg, and ensure fiscal responsibility.” Rothman wrote. “We are proud to endorse her campaign for Governor, and we are confident she will lead Pennsylvania with the same dedication she has shown throughout her career in public service, the private sector, and the military.”
With over a year until the general election, other Republican primary candidates could still emerge. Former gubernatorial candidate, state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R., Franklin), said he has yet to decide whether he’ll run. Mastriano lost his 2022 race against Shapiro by a wide margin, making party leaders wary of a rematch this election cycle.
But already, Garrity has her sights set on the general election — and on Shapiro.
Stacy Garrity on Josh Shapiro
In recent days, Garrity has turned up the temperature of her criticisms against the sitting governor, denouncing his remarks as a keynote speaker at a Pittsburgh summit on hate speech after the assassination of right-wing media personality Charlie Kirk.
Shapiro, Garrity said in a statement, used Kirk’s assassination as “a disgraceful attempt to shift the focus to himself and off of a man who was brutally murdered in front of millions of people.”
Shapiro had called Americans to condemn all political violence and to “reject the rhetoric of vengeance, and instead focus on the work of healing” in his speech, and referred to an incident earlier this year in which his own official Harrisburg residence was firebombed hours after his family had gathered for a Passover Seder.
Sam Chen, a Lehigh Valley-based GOP strategist, called Garrity Republicans’ best chance at beating a formidable incumbent. He cited Morning Consult polling that shows Shapiro to be among the ten most popular governors in the country, and noted he has support from independents and Republicans.
“From a pure electability standpoint, [Garrity is] somebody who won back-to-back terms in a statewide race,” Chen told Spotlight PA. “She’s been doing all the legwork. She’ll speak at any dinner. She’s been a team player.”
Chen said that state Republicans are trying to learn from the 2022 election and unify behind a candidate, like Democrats did with Shapiro. If Mastriano did choose to run in the primary, Chen said, it might impede her in the general election as Garrity would have to win over Mastriano’s more far-right followers while also appealing to moderates.
“Garrity is clearly focused on Shapiro; you can see that in her launch video. She can deal with a primary if it comes up, but her sights are really on the general,” Chen added. “She’s clearly locked in on Shapiro already.”
Garrity’s video announcing her candidacy and her speech after the state party’s endorsement both called out Shapiro, criticizing him as ambitious, fiscally irresponsible, and unable to finish the state budget, which is two and a half months late.
“There is no more dangerous place in Harrisburg than standing between Josh Shapiro and a camera or a liberal donor handing him a check,” she said. “I am not running for governor as a stepping stone to something bigger. I’m running for governor of Pennsylvania to serve you.”
In terms of policy, Garrity is so far pitching herself as a fiscal watchdog who is focused on creating economic activity.
“If you want tens of thousands of jobs, if we want to create billions and billions of dollars of economic activity for our communities, consider voting for me,” she said on a radio show in late September.
She also listed “school choice,” keeping transgender children out of girls’ sports, and creating safe communities as priorities.
Who is Stacy Garrity, the Republican Party pick for Pa. governor?
A native of Bradford County, Garrity is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel. She was deployed three times between 1991 and 2008, in Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom. Garrity received two Bronze Stars and the Legion of Merit award for her service.
Following her time in the military, Garrity worked at Global Tungsten & Powders — a Pennsylvania-based company that makes powders used in electronics and tools — as the vice president of government affairs and industry liaison.
She stayed in the position until she was elected to serve as the state Treasurer in 2021, ousting Democratic incumbent Joe Torsella in an upset.
Garrity handily won re-election in 2024 against Democratic candidate and former addiction counselor Erin McClelland, when she received the largest vote total of any statewide candidate, beating a record previously set by Shapiro.
During her time in office, Garrity has said her focus has been on transparency and cutting costs for Pennsylvanians. This month, for instance, she launched a new version of the Treasury’s transparency portal, which lets people track state expenditures. Added features include a menu showing mandatory payments that are still being made during the ongoing state budget impasse.
Earlier in her tenure, Garrity also eliminated the minimum deposit to open a 529 college savings account and reduced the minimum contribution amount for the account. The 529 program was also upgraded to a gold rating under Garrity’s tenure — making Pennsylvania one of only two states to achieve the rating.
She’s also championed returning unclaimed property to Pennsylvanians throughout her tenure, proposing legislation to allow the Treasury to return unclaimed money under $500 to Pennsylvanians without requiring them to first file a claim with the agency. The bill passed the legislature last summer.
Garrity also has control of the state’s savings and investments as Treasurer. She divested $3 million in Russian holdings following the country’s invasion of Ukraine, and sold nearly all of the Treasury’s $394 million investments in Chinese-associated securities, citing “human rights violations” and “geopolitical risks.” Garrity also increased state investments in Israel by $45 million following the October 7 attack on Israel by the militant group Hamas.
A supporter of President Donald Trump, Garrity has been criticized for speaking at a rally that sought to cast doubt on the result of the 2020 election, a day before the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Garrity said she spoke at the event to “state that the election process had been tarnished by unelected bureaucrats who ignored the election law as written,” and denounced the violence at the Capitol on social media.