The last year of the 2025-26 legislative session is officially underway. Republican Sen. Kim Ward was once again elected to serve as Senate Pro Tempore – the highest ranking Senate officer in the chamber. She has the distinction of being the first woman to hold the position, which she was first elected to by her colleagues in 2022.
Gov. Shapiro is scheduled to give his budget address outlining his proposed spending plan for the upcoming 2026-27 fiscal year on Feb. 3. This speech officially kicks off the legislative budget season – with House and Senate Appropriations Committee hearings scheduled in the weeks following the address.
While budget negotiations are sure to dominate the first half of the legislative year, the upcoming Primary and General Elections will also be a major focus. This year, the entire House, half of the Senate and the office of governor will be on the ballot. Democratic Gov. Shapiro officially kicked off his re-election campaign in early January. On the Republican side, current state Treasurer Stacy Garrity has announced her plans to challenge Shapiro for the position.
There will be several open seats in the House that the state parties will be fighting to win. To date, five members have announced their plans to retire after this session, including Republicans Seth Grove, Bryan Cutler, Sheryl Delozier and Democrats Mary Jo Daley and Anita Kulik. That number is expected to rise and PCCJR will continue to monitor which legislators choose not to run for re-election ahead of the candidate petition filing deadline.
In the near future, special elections will be held to fill four currently vacant House seats resulting from the 2025 General Election. On Feb. 24, Special Elections will be held in the 22nd and 42nd House Districts. Democrat Josh Siegel who represented the 22nd District resigned his position after being elected to serve as Lehigh County Executive Director. Democrat Dan Miller resigned as representative of the 42nd District after he was elected to serve on the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. The other two Special Elections will be held on March 17 to fill vacancies in the 79th House District and 193rd House District. Republican Torren Ecker – who was a strong champion of civil justice reform in the legislature – resigned after being elected to the Adams County Court of Common Pleas. His Republican colleague Lou Schmitt also resigned after winning his bid to serve on the Court of Common Pleas in Blair County.
You can expect a pitched battle for control of both the House and Senate this year.