The PoliticsPA Podcast

With Pennsylvania's primary behind us, who are the big winners and big losers? What does it all mean? And what happens next? Host Tom McGrath is joined by PoliticsPA managing editor Steve Ulrich and Keegan Gibson of Ceisler Media and Issue Advocacy in Pittsburgh. The three cover a range of topics, from the power of the Republican and Democratic bases in the primary to the rough night for incumbents to who exactly are the happiest—and most distraught—people in Pennsylvania politics in the wake of the election.

With 10 days to go until the primary, Franklin & Marshall's Berwood Yost goes deep on what the most recent polling says. Among the topics: the bump that Mehmet Oz hasn't gotten from Donald Trump's endorsement; Doug Mastriano's staying power in the governor's race; and John Fetterman's commanding lead in the Democratic Senate primary.  Yost also discusses what polling says about Pennsylvanians' views on abortion.

With less than a month to go until the May primary, who’s rising, who’s falling, and how will things shake out? Host Tom McGrath talks with Justin Sweitzer of City & State Pennsylvania and Steve Ulrich of PoliticsPA.  The three discuss various races, including the Republican and Democratic primary battles for U.S. Senate and the tight GOP race for the gubernatorial nomination. Among the topics: what impact Donald Trump, the Big Lie and Trumpism in general will have on primary day ; John Fetterman’s underwhelming debate performance; and Congressional races in Pittsburgh and the Lehigh Valley.

Dave McCormick, one of the two frontrunners in Pennsylvania's Republican Senate primary, talks about his campaign. McCormick, former CEO of Bridgewater Associates, the world's largest hedge fund, discusses growing up in Bloomsburg as the son of a university president; why he's concerned about income inequality in Pennsylvania and across America; and why he opposes a raise in the minimum wage and the Biden Administration's newly proposed billionaire tax. McCormick also shares his thoughts on the 2020 election and the January 6th assault on the Capitol -- while refusing to say if he would have voted to certify the election results.

Republican Kathy Barnette, a Montgomery County resident, talks about her candidacy in this spring’s U.S. Senate primary and why she felt compelled to run. Barnette, who’s Black, talks about why she believes Democratic policies have been bad for African Americans, her losing run for Congress in 2020, and why, despite no credible evidence of widespread voter fraud, she’s distrustful of the 2020 election results. Barnette also weighs in on January 6th,  Supreme Court nominee Judge Kentanji Brown Jackson, and the culture-war issues that divide the country.

Recent polls show a sharp shift in how voters in Pennsylvania identify when it comes to political party, with those who lean Republican now topping those who lean Democratic.In this episode, host Tom McGrath and PoliticsPA managing editor Steve Ulrich talk with Berwood Yost, director of the Center for Opinion Research and the Floyd Institute for Public Policy at Franklin & Marshall. Yost discusses those voter trends, as well as what polls say about the U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania and the issues that are most animating voters in 2022. (Warning: This episode also contains also a brief digression on pickup basketball.)

Republican Jeff Bartos -- winner of several early straw polls in the 2022 race for U.S. Senate -- talks about his background and campaign.  Bartos -- a Montgomery County real estate developer who was the GOP nominee for lieutenant governor in 2018 -- opens up about a variety of issues, including his thoughts on the 2020 presidential election, why he won't hold Donald Trump responsible for the January 6th insurrection, mistakes he believes were made in the handling of the pandemic, and his across-the-aisle friendship with Lieutenant Governor (and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate) John Fetterman.

In this episode state representative Malcolm Kenyatta, a Democrat from Philadelphia, talks about his background and his current campaign for the U.S. Senate.Kenyatta, 31, discusses growing up in a low-income family in North Philadelphia; coming out as gay to his mother at age 16; the "basic bargain" he believes isn't being lived up to in America; and the cynical way he says politicians and the media manipulate and divide people. "Far too many elected officials treat this like it's a damn game show.  This is not TV. This is people's lives."

Last November Republicans scored big wins in bellwether Bucks County, doing well across the board in a suburban county that had in recent years been leaning Democratic. What does the GOP's strong showing tell us about what might happen across the commonwealth in the high-stakes 2022 elections? Journalists Chris Ullery of the Bucks County Courier Times and David Murrell of Philadelphia magazine do a post-mortem on the election and break down the issues -- including masks, schools, and critical race theory -- that energized voters there.

A conversation with GOP gubernatorial candidate Dr. Nche Zama. A highly regarded heart surgeon who lives in the Poconos, Zama, 65, shares his life story, including emigrating from a small African village at age 14, putting himself through school in the U.S, and dealing with racial bias. Zama also shares his views on everything from education and COVID to critical race theory, which he calls “crap.” Pennsylvanians, he believes, need to focus more on excellence and less on what divides them.

In a wide-ranging interview,  Democratic Congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Conor Lamb opens up about a range of topics. The 37-year-old Lamb talks about growing up in a political family, his time in the Marines, what voters like about Donald Trump, why Nancy Pelosi is like Jack Lambert, teaching kids about racism, Democrats’ disconnect with many Pennsylvanians, and why he believes he’s better positioned than Lt. Governor John Fetterman to win the general election in November.

As the redistricting process in Pennsylvania comes to a head, SpotlightPA journalist Kate Huangpu (@KateHuangpu13) details where we've been and where we're headed when it comes to redrawing the maps for Congressional and state legislative seats in the commonwealth.  Huangpu discusses various moves by Republican and Democratic officials throughout the process -- and how redistricting will change the balance of power in Pennsylvania.

In this episode Montgomery County commissioner Val Arkoosh, a longtime physician, talks about her candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2022. Arkoosh, a Democrat, discusses her experiences with women having abortions, the frailty of America’s public-health infrastructure, why she’s in favor of banning fracking in Pennsylvania, and what distinguishes her from her fellow Democratic Senate candidates. Arkoosh also shares her thoughts about the other physician in the Senate race,  controversial Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz. Says Arkoosh: “It's hard for me to believe we even took the same oath when we graduated from medical school."

In this episode, state senators John Gordner and Sharif Street talk about recent legislation, passed unanimously by the state Senate, that would move Pennsylvania's Presidential primary earlier, giving Pennsylvanians a greater voice  in selecting who the parties' nominees are. Gordner and Street discuss the politics of the bill, as well as the potential benefits of having the primary earlier in the 2024 cycle.

How much influence will former president Donald Trump have on Pennsylvania's high-profile races in 2022? Will he endorse a candidate for governor? Will there be a Trump rally boosting a U.S. Senate candidate? Will Democrats try to tie every GOP candidate to Trump -- and if they do, will it help or hurt? Muhlenberg political scientist Chris Borick and Politico reporter Holly Otterbein talk with host Tom McGrath about what November's election tells us about Trump and how much clout the former president does -- or doesn't -- have heading into next year's election.

Pennsylvania state Senate President Jake Corman, ranking Republican in the legislature and now a candidate for governor, discusses why he's running for the commonwealth's top job, the 2020 election audit his party is leading, his conversations with Donald Trump and other issues relevant in the campaign.

What are the big takeaways from Election Day 2021 in Pennsylvania?  Host Tom McGrath talks with journalists John Baer (@jbaernews) and Marc Levy (@timelywriter) about Republican enthusiasm, Democratic wokeness, the influence of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, what the election means for John Fetterman, Conor Lamb and Jeff Bartos, what's going on in Camp Hill, and Tom Wolf's voting gaffe.

Pennsylvania politics has never been more interesting -- or more important. Get the inside story on what's really happening on the commonwealth's political scene with this podcast from the editors of PoliticsPA.Hear from Pennsylvania’s biggest power players – from elected officials and political insiders to campaign gurus and journalists. Find out who’s gaining power, who’s losing it – and why. And  understand the issues that are driving the conversation across the state and in the halls of power.