(WHTM) — If a week in politics is a long time, then 2025 was very, very long in Pennsylvania.
Here are the stories in politics that dominated the year.
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A Late State Budget
Better late than never, right? The state budget dominated the capital as lawmakers missed the June 30 deadline and carried the gridlock through November.
All sides claimed victory on the spending plan, which surpassed $50 billion for the first time ever. They didn’t use tax increases or the rainy day fund, either.
Instead, lawmakers found billions in “couch cushions of bureaucracy,” as Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R) put it. It was actually unused lapsed funds.
The budget gave more money to public schools, created a first-ever tax credit for working Pennsylvanians and removed the state from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a tax on carbon-emitting energy producers.
Long-term funding for mass transit was nowhere to be found, however. And the state did not legalize recreational cannabis, or tax and regulate skill games.
Million-dollar Retention Race
Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court retention race had a typical result; voters returned all three liberal justices on the ballot to the court for another 10 years. The amount of money put into the race was anything but typical.
Special interests poured more than $18.8 million into the race, a Spotlight PA review found. That far exceeded any previous such election in Pennsylvania.
The race could have tipped the scales in a politically divided state that has often deferred to the court over election law and major issues. Many Republicans hoped voters would’ve given the party a chance to run replacements in the next odd-year election, which would’ve been 2027.
Blue Wave Crashes
The off-year election brought more issues for Republicans. A blue wave crashed across the Commonwealth, up and down the ballot.
Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo, a well-known and qualified district attorney, lost a judgeship to Democrat La Tasha C. Williams, a virtual unknown who spent less than $3,000 on her campaign.
“It’s a tough pill to swallow, but it is what it is,’ Chardo said. “The voters decided.”
Eugene DePasquale, chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, called the election “an across the board rejection” of Republicans.
Senators Hit the National Scene
Pennsylvania’s two senators crashed onto the national scene this year.
Sen. Dave McCormick (R) stunned PA icon Bob Casey, who served as senator for nearly two decades, to become the state’s junior senator. He was sworn into office in January.
His year was highlighted by an energy and AI summit in Pittsburgh attended by industry executives who pledged to invest billions into the state. Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) and President Donald Trump both attended the event.
Despite frustrations from progressive Democrats, Sen. John Fetterman (D) continued to make headlines for his staunch support of Israel, cozy relationship with Trump and frequent criticism of fellow Democrats.
What’s Ahead in 2026
Pennsylvania won’t any rest from being a battleground state with the eyes of the nation upon it this year.
Shapiro is up for election, and Republicans have fielded a candidate who has already been elected statewide.
All of the State House, with its one-seat Democratic majority, is up for reelection, along with half the State Senate, which has been dominated by Republicans for decades.
Democrats will also seek to flip four congressional seats held by Republicans in the state.
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