Stacy Garrity is the underdog in the 2026 race for Pennsylvania governor against well-funded incumbent Democrat Gov. Josh Shapiro. But she\u2019s been there before, Garrity told a crowd at a conservative grassroots group Americans for Prosperity (AFP) event at the National Constitution Center Thursday evening.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was not predicted to win her first race for state Treasurer in 2020 against incumbent Joe Torsella, who outspent her eleven-to-one.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI quickly figured out I was the sacrificial lamb,\u201d said Garrity. \u201cI just worked and went to everything. I worked as hard as I could. And we kicked it out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Garrity, whom President Trump recently endorsed, was among the guests the Ruthless Podcast<\/a> members interviewed at the Constitution Center as part of AFP\u2019s \u201cOne Small Step,\u201d a yearlong celebration of America\u2019s 250th birthday.\u00a0<\/p>\n Before running for Treasurer in 2020, Garrity had never been involved in politics. She spent 30 years in the Army Reserves, serving in Operation Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom, retiring as a colonel. While commanding Camp Bucca, a detention facility in Iraq, she earned the nickname \u201cAngel of the Desert\u201d for her fair treatment of prisoners.<\/p>\n \u201cServing was and is the honor of my lifetime,\u201d said Garrity.<\/p>\n In the private sector, Garrity worked at Global Tungsten & Powders, where she eventually became a vice president.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSomebody watching government spending has experience in the private sector? Imagine that,\u201d said Josh Holmes of Ruthless.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI had never been involved in politics,\u201d said Garrity. \u201cYou can\u2019t do that in the military.\u201d She was asked to run for the statewide office, but Garrity hails from Bradford County, and no one from a rural county had won a statewide office in more than 40 years, so she was hesitant. She asked the Tungsten CEO about running for treasurer, telling him there was a \u201c99 percent chance\u201d she\u2019d lose but he told her she would win and she did.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI am the fiscal watchdog for over $180 billion,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat elected officials need to understand is we work for the people. They don\u2019t work for us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cEvery single dollar of the $180 billion came from the taxpayers, so we need to treat it like it\u2019s our own,\u201d said Garrity. During her tenure, she\u2019d given back more than $1 billion to taxpayers through her unclaimed property program, and 550 military decorations, including 50 Purple Hearts.<\/p>\n Asked how she fights a culture of self-serving politicians and bureaucrats, Garrity said, \u201cI treat the office like it\u2019s a business and make sure everybody there is focused on serving hardworking Pennsylvanians.\u201d<\/p>\n She noted that Shapiro\u2019s recent budget, which passed four and a half months late, is $50 billion, up from $30 billion ten years ago. That budget also spends $5 billion more than the revenue the state receives, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFamilies need to live within their means, and guess what? The state should be doing the same,\u201d said Garrity.<\/p>\n Afterward, Garrity answered a few questions from the press.<\/p>\n Asked about Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Minnesota and whether the agency should withdraw, Garrity said, \u201cI think it\u2019s always good to cooperate with ICE, especially when they\u2019re doing targeted actions. I thought Tom Holman\u2019s remarks were spot on\u2026He\u2019s a career law enforcement, his only mission is basically to do the job. And he wants safe communities. He said it best: to cooperate, take down rhetoric. We want safe communities.\u201d<\/p>\n Holman recently replaced Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino in Minnesota, after weeks of protests led to the deaths of two people.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the most important job as a governor, to make sure we have safe communities,\u201d Garrity said. \u201cSo, I don\u2019t think it\u2019s helpful to not cooperate. I have a military police background for over 30 years, so I have a different perspective. We need cooperation at every level of law enforcement.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked about the shootings, she said, she would withhold judgment until the results of the investigations were in. Shapiro, meanwhile<\/a>, said there is a \u201cstrong case\u201d for charging the Customs and Border Protection officer who shot Alex Pretti with voluntary manslaughter.\u00a0<\/p>\n Broad + Liberty asked Garrity about Shapiro\u2019s out-of-state book tour while Pennsylvania was buried in a once-in-a-decade snowstorm, with Philadelphia and Pittsburgh struggling to clear their streets.<\/p>\n \u201cI can tell you where I was, I was in Harrisburg,\u201d said Garrity. \u201cIt was shut down, even on Tuesday. My office was at work.\u201d<\/p>\n