The high rhetoric of Josh Siegel\u2019s debut speech as Lehigh County\u2019s newest leader was in keeping with his ambition: To stretch the executive\u2019s role beyond traditional bounds and leverage power the way his Democratic heroes did with the New Deal and Great Society and other programs that flexed government muscle against poverty and inequity.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet us not fear failure, but rather a failure to act,\u201d Siegel said Monday after his swearing-in by Lehigh County Judge Douglas Reichley in the gymnasium at Cumberland Gardens, a venerable public housing development in Allentown.<\/p>\n
Siegel placed his hand not on a Bible but on a stack of books held by his wife, Sara, among them the Constitution and biographies of Democratic giants Franklin D. Roosevelt and Robert F. Kennedy.<\/p>\n
Siegel became what attendees said was the first Lehigh County executive to take the oath of office outside the government center. The location was symbolic of his top priority as he takes office \u2014 to address the housing crisis, a combination of insufficient stock and high prices that is making home ownership an increasingly elusive goal.<\/p>\n
\u201cHousing is central to who we are,\u201d he said, framing it as the bedrock of stable communities. Why, he asked, can government carve out special tax zones for business development, as with Allentown\u2019s Neighborhood Improvement Zone, and not employ similar measures to improve housing?<\/p>\n
Siegel, 32, is the youngest county executive in Pennsylvania history.<\/a> It\u2019s also his third public office job. He served on Allentown City Council from 2020 to 2022 and went on to represent the 22nd District in the state House of Representatives.<\/p>\n Among the guests at the crowded swearing-in was one of Siegel\u2019s former House colleagues, Democratic state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta from Philadelphia. He said he will sorely miss Siegel\u2019s presence in Harrisburg, crediting his friend with an avid desire to serve rooted in genuine compassion.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can tell a lot from the way people are when they\u2019re before the cameras and when they\u2019re not,\u201d Kenyatta said. \u201cWith Josh, he is the same.\u201d<\/p>\n