Republican Doug Mastriano told supporters he didn't get any money from Ohio derailment train operator Norfolk Southern. Records show he took $1,000.
Mastriano, who was backed by Trump in a campaign for Pennsylvania governor last year, is holding a hearing this week on the East Palestine accident.
news.yahoo.comDoubts about candidates tipped the scales in tightest races
Walker “doesn't know what he's talking about,” said Lee, a software tester in the Atlanta suburb of Decatur who ultimately backed Democratic incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock. In Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro won the governor's race by a larger margin than John Fetterman in the Senate race, earning nearly 280,000 more votes. And in the Senate race, though Johnson won reelection over Democrat Mandela Barnes, the margin was narrower than his 2016 or 2010 victories. About 1 in 10 Republican voters backed the Democrat. Forty-one percent of Hobbs voters backed her with reservations, while 12% were voting against the other candidates.
wftv.comShapiro to take office with mandate from Pennsylvania voters
HARRISBURG, Pa. — (AP) — Josh Shapiro, the Democratic governor-elect of Pennsylvania, will take office with a decisive mandate from voters, who overwhelmingly rejected a Republican drive to pare back abortion rights and voting laws in the premier battleground state. Shapiro maintains that he will veto any legislation that he views as undermining abortion rights or voting rights. For his part, Shapiro said he will pursue changes to voting laws — Election Day voter registration and automatic voter registration — that have seen no traction in the Republican-controlled Legislature. With Pennsylvania certain to be a battleground in the 2024 presidential election, the focus on election laws isn't fading. But, he also said work must be done on election laws to make them “transparent, secure and more quickly decided."
wftv.comMastriano concedes to Shapiro, calls for election reform
Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R) conceded to Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro (D) on Sunday in the state’s gubernatorial race, five days after news outlets called the race against him. “Difficult to accept as the results are, there is no right course but to concede, which I do, and I look to the challenges ahead. Josh…
news.yahoo.comMidterms reinforce Christian voter trends on abortion, GOP
In Kentucky, a reliably Republican state, voters rejected a GOP-backed ballot measure aimed at denying any state constitutional protections for abortion. In contrast, about two-thirds of white evangelical voters in both Kentucky and Michigan voted against protecting abortion access. Only about one in 10 voters nationwide and across most states say abortion should be illegal in all cases, according to AP VoteCast. Even among white evangelical voters, while most say abortion should generally be illegal, only about two in 10 say abortion should be illegal in all cases. In each of those three states, roughly two-thirds or more of white evangelical Christian voters backed the GOP candidates.
wftv.comFetterman’s Republican Predecessor Turns on Trump After Dr. Oz’ Big Loss
CNNSen. Pat Toomey (R-PA), who will be replaced in Congress come January by Democrat John Fetterman, admitted Thursday that former President Donald Trump was not a positive influence on the Republican ticket in Pennsylvania — which saw far-right gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano lose in addition to Mehmet Oz.In a CNN interview, the retiring senator began by criticizing the effect of Mastriano’s campaign on down-ballot races. “We had an ultra-MAGA candidate who never appeared to even attempt
news.yahoo.comCandidates who backed overturning Trump loss are rebuffed
Republicans made a striking decision earlier this year to nominate candidates for top statewide posts in swing states who backed overturning President Donald Trump's loss in 2020. Doug Mastriano, who commissioned buses to take Pennsylvanians to the Jan. 6, 2021, protests in Washington failed in his bid to become that state's governor. Mathew DePerno, an attorney who filed a lawsuit spreading Trump's election lies in Michigan in 2020, lost his bid to be that state's attorney general. More significant are the outcomes in the six states that clinched Joe Biden's win in 2020 and where Trump and his allies disputed his loss. In Georgia, Trump unsuccessfully backed a slate of election conspiracy theorists in the GOP primary in May, seeking revenge against incumbent Republicans who rebuffed his requests to overturn his loss.
wftv.comElection deniers lose key races in Rust Belt, but are still in contention out West
Republicans also fell short of a super-majority in the Wisconsin state legislature, meaning that the GOP cannot overturn vetoes by Evers. Dixon, a right-wing media commentator, had supported the false belief that Trump was the rightful winner of the 2020 election. Karamo had aggressively promoted debunked claims about the 2020 election. Those three Rust Belt states — Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania — have been the key swing states in presidential elections for years now, and will be central once again in 2024. Marchant has worked with Finchem and Karamo to foment unfounded allegations about the 2020 election.
wftv.comConspiracists seeking key state election posts falling short
In Michigan, Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson declared victory over Kristina Karamo, a community college instructor who became one of the most prominent election conspiracists in the country. Races in Arizona and Nevada, major swing states where election conspiracists were competing for secretary of state positions, remained too early to call. Still, in Republican-leaning states, some election conspiracists did win secretary of state offices. Wyoming Republican Chuck Gray, a state lawmaker who also endorsed efforts to overturn the 2020 election, was running unopposed for secretary of state. Raffensperger was up against Democratic state Sen. Bee Nguyen on Tuesday.
wftv.comDemocrat Josh Shapiro wins Pennsylvania governor's race, media outlets project
Attorney General Josh Shapiro declared victory in the Pennsylvania governor’s race, keeping the state’s executive branch under Democratic control and alleviating concerns about his opponent undermining the 2024 election. With incumbent Tom Wolf term-limited out of office, Shapiro defeated Republican state Sen. Doug Mastriano to fill the open seat. But he struggled to raise funds and did not begin running television ads until late in the general election campaign. With Pennsylvania's Legislature expected to stay in Republican control, Shapiro has vowed to veto any new restrictions. In September, a Mastriano campaign adviser called for supporters to push the Republican Governors Association to get involved in the race.
wftv.com6 things to watch ahead of high-stakes midterm elections
In Pennsylvania, Trump loyalist Doug Mastriano, the Republican candidate for governor, has struggled in the polls against Democrat Josh Shapiro. Other Trump loyalists to watch: Ohio Senate candidate JD Vance, North Carolina Senate contender Ted Budd, Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon and New York gubernatorial hopeful Lee Zeldin. In Nevada, Republican Jim Marchant is running to become the secretary of state, the state's chief elections official. Lake, Arizona's Republican candidate for governor, is already thought to be a potential Trump running mate. Strategists on both sides believe the state's Senate race, in particular, may do just that.
wftv.comFetterman — with Obama and Biden in tow — makes closing pitch to Pa. voters
Democrats hope that Shapiro, who is polling well in his race against Republican state Sen. Doug Mastriano, will help pull Fetterman across the finish line. On Saturday night in Philadelphia, Fetterman and Shapiro were joined by President Biden and former President Barack Obama, while earlier in the day Obama had rallied for Fetterman near the University of Pittsburgh. “There's a pro tip: Please, if you're gonna give a speech after you've been recovering from a stroke, you really don't want to have to come before Barack Obama,” Fetterman said Saturday in Pittsburgh. The Oz campaign hopes that it can win over enough Shapiro voters to close the gap with Fetterman. “I have a small group of friends that will stick to the Republican Party and vote for Republican candidates,” she said.
wftv.comWhat to watch in the high-stakes 2022 midterm elections
In Pennsylvania, Trump loyalist Doug Mastriano, the Republican candidate for governor, has struggled in the polls against Democrat Josh Shapiro. Other Trump loyalists to watch: Ohio Senate candidate JD Vance, North Carolina Senate contender Ted Budd, Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon and New York gubernatorial hopeful Lee Zeldin. In Nevada, Republican Jim Marchant is running to become the secretary of state, the state's chief elections official. Lake, Arizona's Republican candidate for governor, is already thought to be a potential Trump running mate. Strategists on both sides believe the state's Senate race, in particular, may do just that.
wftv.comBiden, Obama, Trump make final midterm push in Pennsylvania
Obama and Fetterman will appear alongside President Joe Biden and gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro later in the day in Philadelphia. Obama campaigned in recent days across Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada and Arizona before hitting Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, Trump will hold a rally in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, to bolster Oz and Mastriano on Saturday night. The event is part of a final rally blitz that will also take Trump to Florida and Ohio -- both critical presidential battleground states. Republicans in Westmoreland County, where Trump will speak Saturday, hope that the former president will do just that on Saturday.
wftv.comTrump, Mastriano's wife criticize Jews for not loving Israel enough
“As a family, we so much love Israel,” she said. Trump has repeatedly complained that American Jews do not reward the Republican Party's blanket support for Israel — which he has referred to as "your country" when speaking to American Jews — regarding the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. "Jewish people who live in the United States don't love Israel enough," Trump told an Orthodox Jewish magazine last year. Trump has said now repeatedly that basically there's something wrong with American Jews because they don't love Israel as much as he does. Right-wing American support, evangelical Christian support for Israel is really nothing new.
wftv.comUniversity makes new review of Mastriano's doctoral research
A Canadian university that granted a doctorate in history to Doug Mastriano nearly a decade before he became the Republican nominee for governor of Pennsylvania is investigating a fresh complaint about his work that makes multiple allegations of academic fraud in his recently public dissertation. University of New Brunswick President Paul Mazerolle told The Associated Press in a phone interview Saturday that the school is also bringing in a team of outsiders to review its policies and procedures for graduate study, including issues raised by how Mastriano's research was handled and evaluated.
news.yahoo.comOz-Mastriano: An awkward pair atop Pennsylvania's GOP ticket
Nowhere in sight — and not even mentioned — was Doug Mastriano, the GOP nominee for governor against Democrat Josh Shapiro. Like Mastriano, Oz has been endorsed by Trump. But unlike Mastriano, Oz hasn't been warmly embraced by Trump's most loyal voters — the ones that form Mastriano's far-right base. “It's like he’s still running a primary campaign,” said Republican campaign strategist Bob Salera. Oz, meanwhile, emphasizes national GOP talking points on crime and inflation, aiming to persuade swing voters and even Democrats.
wftv.comBiden says of candidate Fetterman: 'John IS Pennsylvania'
An energized President Joe Biden returned Friday to the Keystone State, his 15th visit since he took office, this time to attend a fundraiser with Vice President Kamala Harris and other leaders to boost Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman.
In Pa. governor's race, faith surfaces in contrasting ways
Republican Doug Mastriano’s campaign has several hallmarks of Christian nationalism, which fuses Christian and political imagery, words and rituals and promotes a belief that America has been and should be a Christian nation. Mastriano, a state senator, has rejected the “Christian nationalist” label, though his political events often carry the feel of a worship service. At the recent church event, a campaign staffer told a reporter Mastriano would not be taking questions. He said Shapiro appears to be contrasting his broader view of religious freedom in a diverse population with Mastriano’s narrower one. At the Carmichaels church, Mastriano addressed a small but enthusiastic crowd on a September morning.
wftv.comPa. governor candidates deploy religion in contrasting ways
In one of the most closely watched races in one of the most contested of battleground states, both gubernatorial candidates bring up religion. Mastriano's campaign has several hallmarks of Christian nationalism, which fuses Christian and political imagery, words and rituals and promotes a belief that America has been and should be a Christian nation. He said Shapiro appears to be contrasting his broader view of religious freedom in a diverse population with Mastriano’s narrower one. At the Carmichaels church, Mastriano addressed a small but enthusiastic crowd on a September morning. ___Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc.
wftv.comPompeo talks to 1/6 panel, Mastriano cuts own meeting short
The House panel investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection has interviewed former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and met briefly with Pennsylvania’s Republican nominee for governor Doug Mastriano as it probes Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.