With President Joe Biden‘s announcement Sunday that he will not accept the Democratic Party nomination to run for a second term, speculation on potential vice presidential running mates continues, including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.
Vice President Kamala Harris is widely expected to seek the nomination during the Democratic National Convention in August and was endorsed Sunday by President Biden in his announcement.
Shapiro is one of just several Democratic governors who have garnered attention as possible running mates for Harris, but just who is he?
Who is Josh Shapiro?
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, but raised in Upper Dublin Township in the Philadelphia suburbs, Shapiro became the 48th governor of Pennsylvania after assuming office in January 2023.
After working as a legislative assistant and later chief of staff for a Montgomery County congressman, Shapiro in 2004 ran for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in the 153rd district, which contains Abington Township and part of Upper Dublin Township in Montgomery County. Shapiro earned reelection in 2006, 2008 and 2010 before winning election to the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners in 2011, marking the first time Republicans lost control of the county’s commissioners board.
Shapiro, who earned a law degree from Georgetown, launched a campaign for Pennsylvania Attorney General in January 2016 and narrowly defeated State Senator John Rafferty Jr. He was reelected in 2020 before launching his gubernatorial campaign in October 2021.
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As attorney general, Shapiro inherited an investigation of allegations of sexual abuse perpetrated by members of the Catholic Church, which produced an extensive grand jury report alleging the sexual abuse of more than 1,000 children by more than 300 priests. His office also led efforts to protect health care access for nearly 2 million Pennsylvanians by forcing an agreement between UPMC and Highmark. In 2021, Shapiro helped negotiate $1 billion for Pennsylvania as part of a national opioid settlement.
Recently, Shapiro has publicly voiced support for abortion access in Pennsylvania and, during his gubernatorial campaign, vowed to veto bills banning or restricting abortion in the commonwealth.
Shapiro recently signed a $47.6 billion budget for Pennsylvania that increases public education funding, supports economic development and provides a brief boost for transit systems. Notably, the budget does not include some of Shapiro’s own revenue-generating ideas, such as legalizing recreational cannabis or regulating slot-like skill games.
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Shapiro, who is Jewish, has repeatedly voiced support for Israel in the Israel-Hamas war and issued statements condemning antisemitism.
The 51-year-old governor has used executive power to make a number of notable changes in Pennsylvania since taking office. Highlights include enacting automatic but optional voter registration services when Pennsylvanians renew or receive their driver’s licenses, as well as removing requirements for four-year college degrees from most public sector jobs.
Shapiro met his wife, Pennsylvania First Lady Lori Shapiro, in high school. They have four children and live at the Pennsylvania Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg.
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