WGAL’s Commitment 2026 debate series continues with a moderated discussion between Democratic incumbent James Malone and Republican challenger Tom Jones for Pennsylvania’s 36th Senate District.
Watch the full debate in the video player above.
On WGAL News 8 at Noon, the candidates made their cases to voters ahead of the November midterms.
Each candidate was given one minute to answer each question. If the moderator, WGAL Anchor Matt Barcaro, asked either of them a follow-up question or gave them a chance for rebuttal, they had 30 seconds to respond. The candidates were not allowed to ask each other questions.
The debate included the following topics, as well as opening and closing statements:
Data centers Grocery prices Gas tax holiday Measles outbreak Library tax referendum Party differences
WGAL political reporter Tom Lehman’s detailed report on the debate can be viewed here.
WGAL News 8
36th Senatorial District
Malone opening statement
All right. I’m your state senator, James Andrew Malone. I’m honored to serve after winning a special election in March of 2025.
I spent the last, what, 12, 13 months? 16, whatever, working very hard to bring funding back to our district, to, you know, continue to move good tax cuts for small families and for elders and small businesses, and working on trying to continue to build on our systems, especially our education systems and our programs to really build people up.
I’ve also had the honor of working to preserve our farmlands and increase our support for our games and wildlife. And I look forward to another four years of serving if you all choose to invest in me with your votes.
Jones opening statement
Thank you Matt and thank you to WGAL for hosting this debate.
My wife Rochelle and I, we were born and raised here in Lancaster County. We raised our four children here. And it’s been an honor to live and serve in my community. I served as a township supervisor, where I also served as a police commissioner. I made sure that our police received raises for eight years straight. I also served on the board of directors for our fire company. I made sure that our fire company and our first responders were well equipped, well equipped. We purchased over $2 million of apparatus to make sure that that happened. And I did all this without raising taxes.
I currently serve as a state representative. I’ve been able to work across the aisle and get good legislation done in a divided legislature, and even signed into law by our current governor.
I’ve been, LNP has said that I am the most open and accessible elected representative in Lancaster County. And that’s how I plan to serve as your next state senator.
QUESTION: All right. Thank you both. Now to our first question, data centers. They have been a point of contention in the 36 District and across the state. Both of your campaigns have paid for ads against your opponent on this issue. The question. Do you support a statewide data center moratorium, which would stop data center development, and if so, how long should a moratorium last?
Malone on data centers
Thank you. I actually support local control, maintaining our commonwealth’s integrity of local control. So, through the Senate, local government and committee, I’ve passed two different bills that would allow local control to issue moratoriums.
I think they’re both valid, and they both should be there. One six months. The other is 18, allowing people to set up the regulations that they need to be able to work with their residents and figure out what works best for their communities.
I also believe that we should protect the integrity and not have NDAs. And I voted, as well, to end those options, for data center development. And I’ve also voted that, data centers pay their own way as they move into our communities and our areas. But I do believe we need to watch that.
Jones on data centers
I have voted to support a 180-day pause, or you can call it a moratorium. But it’s not from one day to another. It’s any time that a data center is proposed in a municipality in Pennsylvania. The municipal officials, the local elected officials that represent that community have the ample time to address zoning and ordinances in relation to data center development.
We need local control and local decision making when it comes to what happens in our communities. And I was a township supervisor, and I understand that our township supervisors, our borough councils, those are the folks, they’re are neighbors that are representing us well in our local governments. They need to be making these decisions.
I have voted against tax breaks for data centers. And I have voted for consistently, for local decision making.
QUESTION: In many polls, including Franklin and Marshall College, voters say the economy and affordability are top issues for them this election. As a state senator, what could you do to bring down prices on groceries and other goods in a meaningful way?
Jones on economy, affordability
As state senator, what I would do is continue to do what I’ve done as a state representative, and that’s vote to make life more affordable for residents here in Pennsylvania.
I voted to remove the gas tax. Gas and fuel prices directly affect our grocery prices. And so voting on good legislation that makes life more affordable.
Also, on the on the broader scale, voting for economic policies that would welcome industry to Pennsylvania, provide good jobs, good paying jobs for our families, for our children so that they can live, work, and build a family right here in Pennsylvania.
What’s also important is the affordability, affordability and availability of housing here in Pennsylvania. We need to get regulation out of the way so that we can build more homes and make life more affordable and available here in Lancaster County and across Pennsylvania.
Malone on economy, affordability
Understood. Yeah, no, I have actually been actively working on this in the Senate, including voting on a bill in local government that would reduce the amount of time and amount of permitting that’s required to get houses built.
We’ve also done some other votes to increase tax credits to be able to get those out to families.
I’ve also done some work to try to improve our accessibility to housing and lowering those overall costs as they’re being built and as we’re trying to get new people into their homes and keeping people in through our Whole Homes program.
Additionally, I voted to remove the tax on the electric bill, which is something that affects every single person.
And, I will continue to work towards those efforts.
QUESTION: Voters have also said that high gas prices are a considerable strain on their family’s budgets. Pennsylvania has one of the highest gas taxes in the country, at nearly $0.58 per gallon. Now, a portion of the state gas tax revenue goes towards maintaining roads and bridges in the state. The question is in the state Senate, would you support a gas tax holiday for the gas tax, or part of it is suspended for a period of time.
Malone on gas prices
Yeah, absolutely. I would definitely support a holiday. Unfortunately, the last time it was offered in the Senate, it was as a gut and replace amendment that would take over the reduction of our electricity tax.
So, there are some definite, I think, culpability issues that we need to get to so we can have clean bills come out and be moved forward, especially when we get bills that have well over 136 – are a supermajority from the House. We ought to put those on the floor and get our votes and get them out.
But I would definitely, support having that temporary moratorium. Again, it’s only going to be a portion of that tax because obviously we have the federal tax on there as well.
Jones on gas prices
Yes. And I actually voted to support a gas tax holiday, or the elimination, removal, of our gas tax for at least a long period of time to bring relief, much needed relief, to our residents, not only here in Pennsylvania, but especially here in Lancaster County. I think what we need to do, that’s a short-term answer to some of the economic problems we have surrounding our fuel costs. Really on a national stage, we’ve had a lot of refineries that have gone offline. We need to actually increase production in the United States and make sure that we have the proper supply of fuel. That would actually bring down the costs as well. But in the short-term, yes, I actually voted for that.
QUESTION: Lancaster County is in the middle of its worst measles outbreak in decades. The state health department has reported 443 measles cases in the county so far this year. According to the CDC, that is higher than every statewide total except for three. Do you think that Pennsylvania is doing enough to address this outbreak, and do you support any change to the state’s vaccine mandates for measles and other contagious diseases?
Jones on measles
I think it’s very important that we keep our community safe. And we have a wonderful, we’re blessed here in Lancaster County, especially to have four healthcare providers. We have a, a really good health advisory council that keeps an eye on these situations. And so we’re, we’re kept informed of this information.
I think here in Pennsylvania, we have the right to, to, opt out of vaccination, due to either religious or philosophical differences. I think that that’s something that we should protect here in Pennsylvania.
I think it’s very important that people have that freedom of conscience to make those decisions. My four children, my wife and I, we are, we’re vaccinated against measles. And so we want to make sure that our community is kept safe. And that’s the priority.
Malone on measles
I think Pennsylvania is doing enough. They are reaching out to educate all of our citizens, and they are upholding the personal responsibility of individuals to choose whether or not to take that step, that step forward. Myself and all my children are also vaccinated and were as a kids. And I do believe that that is a positive. But I don’t think that it is something that we should explicitly mandate and enforce. I do believe that we need to allow individuals to have those personal responsibilities and to take that upon themselves as to whether or not they’re going to move forward and trust the science of what we’ve been able to bring forward.
QUESTION: When voters go to cast their ballots in your race, they’ll also face a question about whether to create a library tax to help fund Lancaster County’s libraries. How will you vote on this referendum and where should the funding for libraries come from?
Malone on library tax
All right. So on the referendum, I’m personally going to vote no because we have so many tax increases coming up currently. Our county unfortunately is something over $10 million in debt and will be raising taxes multiple years in a row.
And, you know, it is one of those things where we’ve had 20 and 30 years of deferred maintenance all across the county, and now we’re having to pay due. So, I don’t think it’s the right time right now to raise that tax.
We do have a good program. However, it has been terribly underfunded and that is at our local municipal levels, our municipalities putting in those funds for our local libraries. I think we need to work more on that outreach and get individuals and residents to go and speak to their municipality and advocate for the library if they truly feel that it is valid to address.
Jones on library tax
Right. So, the question that’s on the ballot is a property tax increase for all residents of Lancaster County. And when our homes just reassessed, the average home in Lancaster County at 300 and about 375,000. The 0.55 mil tax increase would put about $206 on the average home.
Right now, our families do not need additional taxes put on them permanently. I believe that, the, our local municipalities, when I was a township supervisor, our, our library did a wonderful job for our community, and we supported them very generously. So, local municipalities, supporting their libraries, and libraries making a case for that funding. But we certainly don’t need a 0.55 mil increase on our property taxes.
QUESTION: One of the complaints that we hear from voters is that politics seems to be more polarizing than ever, and that both political parties are too extreme and divisive. What is one specific issue where your position differs from that of the main stance of your party?
Jones on differing with party
I think it’s about communication. What you don’t see in the media is when we actually work together, when we work across the aisle, and my willingness as a conservative and as a Republican to work with my Democrat colleagues across the aisle has actually produced good legislation to help all Pennsylvanians.
That’s where I’m, I believe I’m different, where I have actually worked with some of my colleagues from Philadelphia to advance good legislation that moved through the House unanimously, that moved through the Senate unanimously and went to the governor’s desk last year and was signed into law. I’m really proud of that. I’m proud of that accomplishment. I’m proud of being able to work across the aisle for win-wins for Pennsylvania and for people right here in Lancaster County.
FOLLOW-UP QUESTION: Is there a specific issue where you differ, though, from the Republican Party?
Specific issue where I differ from the Republican Party? I would say that I don’t follow party rules, or I’m a Republican because we are a republic. I’m not a Republican because of party, party allegiance.
Malone on differing with party
Okay. So, I am a, for better or worse, I am a gun owner. I believe in having some very common-sense regulation to make sure that we’re all safe. But I also believe in having that ability to learn and control your own security, and in getting out and being a part of nature and conservancy through hunting and fishing. And, and, frankly, I enjoy trap shooting.
Now, obviously that’s a very niche area. And there are a lot of Democrats who are, you know, responsible gun owners.
But I think in the larger picture, that is one area where we typically disagree as an overall party versus an individual.
And I think just a quick other one would probably be in maintaining and holding local control above all other things.
Malone closing statements
Thank you. Thank you for having this debate and giving us a chance to speak to everybody. I am your state senator, James Andrew Malone. I do greatly appreciate having the honor to serve. And, you know, whether it’s in this station or in another, I will continue to serve. And I would hope to be able to do this for another four years.
I do believe that a lot of the what we’ve talked about, you know, maintaining local control, beyond data centers, beyond health crises and maintaining reasonable expenses, and reducing the tax burden on families and small businesses is very important. And I think working together, we can definitely have real results in that. And I look forward to doing that for another four years.
Jones closing statement
Well, thank you Matt, and thank you again for hosting this debate. I was born and raised here in Lancaster County. My wife and I, we raised our four children, our daughters married, and, you know, they’re looking for a home right now. I want my kids to have the same opportunities I’ve had.
You know, I’ve traveled all across this country. I’ve traveled outside this country. And when I come back to Lancaster County, I’m always, ‘Why did I leave?’ We live in the most beautiful place. And I might be biased, but I think we live in the best part of the United States of America. I want my kids to have the same life I’ve had here in Lancaster County, here in Pennsylvania.
I want the economy to thrive so that they can have good-paying jobs. I want them to be able to afford a home so they can raise a family. And I want them to have a safe community.
I’ve worked across the aisle as a state representative to provide these things for my family and for yours. And I’m asking for your vote to be your next senator and continue to serve in that way.