2016 Pennsylvania Attorney General election
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Pennsylvania attorney general election of 2016 took place on November 8, 2016, to elect a new Pennsylvania attorney general. Democratic incumbent Kathleen Kane originally indicated her intention to seek re-election, but dropped out after she was criminally charged with violating grand jury secrecy laws stemming from alleged leaks of grand jury investigation details to embarrass a political enemy.[1][2]
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November 8, 2016
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Shapiro: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Rafferty: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Tie: 50% No votes | |||||||||||||||||
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Democratic nominee and Montgomery County commissioner Josh Shapiro defeated Republican state senator John Rafferty Jr. by a margin of 2.78%.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Declared
- John Morganelli, Northampton County district attorney, candidate for Attorney General in 2000 and 2004 and nominee in 2008[3]
- Josh Shapiro, chairman of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors and former state representative (2005–2012)[4]
- Stephen Zappala, Allegheny County district attorney[5]
Withdrawn
- David Fawcett, former Allegheny County councilman[6][7]
- Kathleen Kane, incumbent attorney general[8][9]
- Jack Stollsteimer, former Delaware County assistant district attorney and former assistant United States attorney[10][11]
Endorsements
John Morganelli
Individuals
- Jean Engler, Carbon County district attorney[12]
- Anthony Rosini, former Northumberland County district attorney[12]
- Cal Shields, former Schuylkill County district attorney[12]
Josh Shapiro
Presidents
U.S. senators
- Bob Casey, Jr., United States senator from Pennsylvania[13]
Former assistant U.S. attorneys
- Jack Stollsteimer, former Delaware County assistant district attorney, former assistant United States attorney and former 2016 attorney general candidate[11]
Governors
- Ed Rendell, 45th governor of Pennsylvania[13]
- Tom Wolf, 47th and current governor of Pennsylvania[13]
State executive officials
State legislators
- Leslie Acosta, state representative[13]
- Donna Bullock, state representative[13]
- Tina Davis, state representative[13]
- Art Haywood, state senator[13]
- Vincent Hughes, state senator and former state representative[13]
- Stephen Kinsey, state representative[13]
- Leanne Krueger-Braneky, state representative[13]
- Daylin Leach, state senator and former state representative[13]
- Joanna E. McClinton, state representative[13]
Mayors and other municipal leaders
- Kim Bracey, Mayor of York[14]
- Blondell Reynolds Brown, Philadelphia City Councilwoman[13]
- Darrell L. Clarke, Philadelphia City Council president[15]
- Rick Gray, Mayor of Lancaster[14]
- Derek Green, Philadelphia City Councilman[13]
- Bill Greenlee, Philadelphia City Councilman[13]
- Helen Gym, Philadelphia City Councilwoman[13]
- Kenyatta Johnson, Philadelphia City Councilman and former state representative[13]
- Eric Papenfuse, Mayor of Harrisburg[14]
- Cherelle Parker, Philadelphia City Councilman and former state representative[13]
- Maria Quiñones-Sanchez, Philadelphia City Councilwoman[13]
- Marian Tasco, Philadelphia City Councilwoman[13]
- Jewell Williams, Philadelphia Sheriff[13]
Labor unions
- AFSCME 13[13]
- Laborers District Council[13]
- PASNAP[13]
- Plumbers Local 690[13]
- PSEA[13]
- UFCW Local 1776[13]
Organizations
- Chester County Democratic Committee[13]
- Delaware County Democratic Committee[13]
- Democracy for America[13]
- Equality Pennsylvania[13]
- Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5[13]
- League of Conservation Voters[13]
- Liberty City Democratic Club[13]
- Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club[16]
- Montgomery County Democratic Committee[13]
- Planned Parenthood PA PAC[13]
Newspapers
Stephen Zappala
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
Kathleen Kane |
John Morganelli |
Josh Shapiro |
Stephen Zappala |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harper Polling[19] | January 22–23, 2016 | 640 (LV) | ± 3.81% | 31% | 9% | 13% | 18% | – | 30% |
| – | 12% | 19% | 20% | – | 49% |
Results
Shapiro—80-90%
Shapiro—60-70%
Shapiro—50-60%
Shapiro—40-50%
Shapiro—30-40%
Zappala—40-50%
Zappala—50-60%
Zappala—60-70%
Zappala—70-80%
Morganelli—30-40%
Morganelli—40-50%
Morganelli—60-70%
Morganelli—70-80%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Josh Shapiro | 725,168 | 47.03% | |
| Democratic | Stephen Zappala | 566,501 | 36.74% | |
| Democratic | John Morganelli | 250,097 | 16.22% | |
| Total votes | 1,541,766 | 100.0% | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
Declared
- Joe Peters, former federal and state prosecutor and nominee for Pennsylvania Auditor General in 2004[21]
- John Rafferty, state senator[22]
Withdrawn
- Todd Stephens, state representative[23]
Declined
- Heather Heidelbaugh, former Allegheny County councilwoman[24][6]
Results
Rafferty—80-90%
Rafferty—70-80%
Rafferty—60-70%
Rafferty—50-60%
Peters—50-60%
Peters—70-80%
Peters—80-90%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Rafferty | 819,510 | 63.82% | |
| Republican | Joe Peters | 464,491 | 36.18% | |
| Total votes | 1,284,001 | 100.0% | ||
General election
Predictions
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Josh Shapiro | 3,057,010 | 51.39% | −4.75% | |
| Republican | John Rafferty | 2,891,325 | 48.61% | +7.05% | |
| Total votes | 5,948,335 | 100.0% | N/A | ||
| Democratic hold | |||||
Notes
- Key:
A – all adults
RV – registered voters
LV – likely voters
V – unclear