Faith and family guided Shapiro’s path into politics.

For Shapiro, an observant Conservative Jew who was raised in Dresher, Pennsylvania (outside of Philadelphia), faith is a lodestar

Get to Know Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania Governor and Commencement Speaker

SHAPIRO, Joshua David, a Representative from Montgomery County; born in Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo., 1973; graduated, Akiba Academy; B.A., political science, University of Rochester, 1995; J.D., Georgetown University Law Center, 2002; United States Congressional Aide (1994-2003); chief of staff, United States Congressman Joseph M.

Official Website - PA House Archives Official Website

Josh Shapiro was raised in Dresher, Pennsylvania, and is an observant Conservative Jew. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Rochester and a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center.

Get to know Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro

B.A., political science, University of Rochester, 1995; J.D., Georgetown University Law Center, 2002; United States Congressional Aide (1994-2003); chief of staff, United States Congressman Joseph M. Hoeffel (1999-2003); elected as a Democrat to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 2005 term; reelected to serve 3 consecutive terms thereafter;

United States Congressional Aide (1994-2003); chief of staff, United States Congressman Joseph M. Hoeffel (1999-2003); elected as a Democrat to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 2005 term; reelected to serve 3 consecutive terms thereafter; appointed, Deputy Speaker (2007);

Josh previously worked as a congressional aide and chief of staff for U.S. Congressman Joseph M. Hoeffel.

elected, Attorney General of Pennsylvania (2017-January 16, 2023); elected, Governor of Pennsylvania (January 17, 2023-present).

gubernatorial appointee, chair, Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (2015-2022); elected, Attorney General of Pennsylvania (2017-January 16, 2023); elected, Governor of Pennsylvania (January 17, 2023-present).

co-chair, Speaker's Commission on Legislative Reform (2007); resigned from the House, January 3, 2012; elected, commissioner, Montgomery County (2012-2016); appointed, board, Pennsylvania Convention Center (2012-2016); vice chair, Budget Deficit and Fiscal Stabilization Task Force, Governor-elect Wolf Transition Team (2014-2015);

chief of staff, United States Congressman Joseph M. Hoeffel (1999-2003); elected as a Democrat to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 2005 term; reelected to serve 3 consecutive terms thereafter; appointed, Deputy Speaker (2007); co-chair, Speaker's Commission on Legislative Reform (2007); resigned from the House, January 3, 2012;

Josh currently serves as Governor of Pennsylvania, an office to which he was elected in 2023. He previously served as Pennsylvania attorney general from 2017 to January 2023 and as a Montgomery County commissioner from 2012 to 2016. He was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 2005 term and was reelected for three consecutive terms.

2026 Pennsylvania General Election 

The 2026–2027 budget builds on that progress with a comprehensive set of investments and reforms to expand housing access, protect renters and homeowners, and strengthen coordination across state government, including:

  * Protecting Renters and Promoting Housing Stability: Establishes a statewide cap on rental application fees tied to the actual cost of screening and prohibits fees before a property is viewed; affirms a tenant’s right to terminate a lease due to domestic violence without financial penalty; seals eviction records for individuals who were not actually evicted; and advances fair-chance housing reforms to limit when and how criminal history may be considered in rental decisions.

Gov Shapiro 2026–27 Budget Proposal to Keep Doing What’s Working in Pennsylvania | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

Today, more than half a million Pennsylvanians earn less than $15 an hour, and the purchasing power of the Commonwealth’s minimum wage has eroded by more than 30 percent since 2009, pushing these families closer to poverty.

  * The 2026–2027 budget once again calls on the General Assembly to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour beginning January 1, 2027. This commonsense reform would boost consumer spending, reduce turnover for employers, and improve workers’ health and economic stability — while also delivering significant savings for taxpayers.

Philadelphia, PA – Today, Governor Josh Shapiro signed Executive Order 2024-04, creating the Pennsylvania (PA) Permit Fast Track Program to streamline the Commonwealth’s permitting process for key economic development and infrastructure projects, increase transparency, and accelerate timelines to ensure state government delivers results quickly and efficiently.

Governor Shapiro Signs Executive Order Creating the PA Permit Fast Track Program to Speed Up Government, Drive Economic Growth, and Make Pennsylvania More Competitive

  * Protecting Renters and Promoting Housing Stability: Establishes a statewide cap on rental application fees tied to the actual cost of screening and prohibits fees before a property is viewed; affirms a tenant’s right to terminate a lease due to domestic violence without financial penalty; seals eviction records for individuals who were not actually evicted; and advances fair-chance housing reforms to limit when and how criminal history may be considered in rental decisions.
  * Supporting Manufactured Homeowners: Limits annual lot rent increases in manufactured home communities and requires advance notice of increases, protecting residents — many of whom own their homes but rent the land beneath them — from sudden and unaffordable cost spikes.

Proposes statewide renter protections, including limits on application fees, allowing domestic-violence survivors to terminate leases, sealing non-eviction records, and limiting consideration of criminal history in rental decisions.

Calls for raising Pennsylvania's minimum wage to $15 an hour beginning January 1, 2027.

Signed an executive order creating the Pennsylvania Permit Fast Track Program to streamline permitting for economic-development and infrastructure projects.

Proposes limits on annual lot-rent increases and advance-notice requirements for manufactured-home communities.

- Proposes statewide renter protections, including limits on application fees, allowing domestic-violence survivors to terminate leases, sealing non-eviction records, and limiting consideration of criminal history in rental decisions.
- Calls for raising Pennsylvania's minimum wage to $15 an hour beginning January 1, 2027.
- Signed an executive order creating the Pennsylvania Permit Fast Track Program to streamline permitting for economic-development and infrastructure projects.
- Proposes limits on annual lot-rent increases and advance-notice requirements for manufactured-home communities.

Economy

  * Creating Safe and Healthy Learning Environments: The budget continues funding universal free breakfast, menstrual hygiene products at no cost to students, and $111 million for school safety and mental health supports. Over 800 schools have expanded mental health services, and more than 200 counselors have been hired since the Shapiro Administration began. School facilities investments total $125 million, including $25 million for the Solar for Schools program.

  * Reducing Distractions to Improve Learning in the Classroom: Supporting students isn’t just about funding schools — it’s about creating a healthy, productive learning environment. Cell phones and mobile devices can distract from instruction, peer interaction, and skill development.

Governor Shapiro is calling on the General Assembly to pass a bell-to-bell cell phone ban, keeping devices out of students’ hands from the start of the school day until dismissal to help them focus, engage with peers, and build social and emotional skills.

Proposes continued funding for free school breakfast, free menstrual hygiene products, and school safety and mental-health supports.

Calls for a bell-to-bell ban on student cell phones during the school day.

- Proposes continued funding for free school breakfast, free menstrual hygiene products, and school safety and mental-health supports.
- Calls for a bell-to-bell ban on student cell phones during the school day.

Education

“The Fifth Circuit’s ruling is a direct attack on women’s health care and their ability to make decisions about their own bodies — as long as I’m Governor, I will always protect a woman's right to choose,” said Governor Shapiro. “Despite this court’s ruling, Pennsylvanians should know that abortion remains safe, accessible, and legal here in our Commonwealth.
Mifepristone is a safe, effective medication that has been widely used for decades, but once again, anti-abortion advocates are pushing junk science and encouraging the courts to upend decades of research in their continued assault on a woman’s freedom to choose. My Administration is taking action to push back, protect access, and ensure Pennsylvanians can continue to get the care they need.”

Gov. Shapiro Takes Legal Action to Protect Abortion Access | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

May 04, 2026
Harrisburg, PA – Today, Governor Josh Shapiro announced that Pennsylvania has joined a multistate amicus brief urging reversal of a recent federal appeals court decision that restricts access to medication abortion — which accounts for over 60 percent of all abortions — by blocking the mailing of mifepristone prescriptions.

Said he will protect abortion access in Pennsylvania and joined a multistate legal brief seeking to reverse restrictions on mailing mifepristone prescriptions.

- Said he will protect abortion access in Pennsylvania and joined a multistate legal brief seeking to reverse restrictions on mailing mifepristone prescriptions.

Healthcare

  * This budget includes $68.3 million for the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency’s (PCCD) Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) Program — a $5.2 million increase — and adds $1 million to the Building Opportunity through Out of School Time (BOOST) Program, bringing total BOOST funding to $12.5 million to keep kids safe, supported, and engaged.

  * The 2026–2027 budget continues this effort with a $16.2 million investment for four additional cadet classes and fully eliminates the statutory cap on the number of troopers — allowing for increased patrol visibility and faster response times. This funding will train 380 new state troopers beginning in 2026–2027 and maintain a regular replacement cycle to modernize the PSP fleet and improve officer safety.

  * It includes a $30 million investment in competitive grants through the Office of the State Fire Commissioner (OSFC) — doubling annual funding — to support recruitment, retention, and capital needs for volunteer and professional fire companies.

Additional investments include $550,000 to consolidate Capitol Complex security contracts and a proposal to provide death and workers’ compensation benefits to first responders while deployed by the Commonwealth during a disaster emergency under a Governor’s Emergency Declaration.

Proposes increased funding for violence-intervention programs and out-of-school programs for young people.

Proposes funding four additional state trooper cadet classes and eliminating the statutory cap on the number of troopers.

Proposes doubling annual grant funding for volunteer and professional fire companies to $30 million.

- Proposes increased funding for violence-intervention programs and out-of-school programs for young people.
- Proposes funding four additional state trooper cadet classes and eliminating the statutory cap on the number of troopers.
- Proposes doubling annual grant funding for volunteer and professional fire companies to $30 million.

Public Safety

As of October 16, 2026, Josh Shapiro’s website did not contain information on this issue.

Energy & the Environment

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Foreign Policy and Immigration

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Josh Shapiro

- Calls for raising Pennsylvania's minimum wage to $15 an hour beginning January 1, 2027.
- Signed an executive order creating the Pennsylvania Permit Fast Track Program to streamline permitting for economic-development and infrastructure projects.
- Proposes limits on annual lot-rent increases and advance-notice requirements for manufactured-home communities.