Anti-abortion extremists eye Pennsylvania governor’s mansion

The two leading Republican candidates for Pennsylvania governor—state Sen. Doug Mastriano and Treasurer Stacy Garrity—have both taken hardline anti-abortion positions that put them at odds with most voters.

While neither Mastriano nor Garrity have yet launched a campaign, both have publicly expressed interest in challenging incumbent Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro next year.

“Running for state office is not one and done,” said Mastriano, who lost the 2022 governor race by almost 15 points. “I have a strategy laid out if the time comes.”

Mastriano’s 2022 loss was attributed to his far-right stance on a host of issues, including abortion. He pledged to enact a six-week abortion ban in the state if elected and described himself as “the most pro-life guy out there” in a radio interview.

A University of Maryland poll from last year showed that 53% of Pennsylvania Republicans oppose criminalizing abortion. For Democrats, it’s 73%. The same poll found that 69% of all Pennsylvanians would support a federal law protecting abortion access.

Because of this, some Republicans have expressed wariness about a second Mastriano campaign.

“Doug Mastriano would be a death sentence, for not only the governor’s race, but also would hurt us so bad in keeping the Congress,” said Jim Worthington, a Republican donor from Bucks County, in an interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Garrity, who has served as treasurer since 2021, likely won’t quell those concerns. In a 2022 post to Facebook, she celebrated the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade as “a great day for the sanctity of life” and declared “justice has prevailed.”

A month later, Garrity posted an image to Facebook with the words “Roses are red, violets are blue, defund Planned Parenthood.” Garrity later sold campaign merchandise with this phrase printed on it along with a hat that said “Baby Lives Matter.”

A KFF tracking poll found that nearly one in three American women have received health care from Planned Parenthood at some point in their lives.

In another Facebook post, Garrity wrote “Pennsylvania needs a PRO-LIFE governor.”

Mastriano said he would be open to running on the same ticket as Garrity, with one of them as lieutenant governor.