Meet Shannon

Shannon M. Jackson is a longtime Chambersburg professional and community member running for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 89th District covering Chambersburg borough and the townships of Greene, Guilford, and Hamilton.

About Shannon Jackson

Jackson holds a master’s degree in Military History and a bachelor’s degree in Physics. He has also studied business, accounting, and engineering. He believes learning new skills helps him better serve the community.

In 2023, Jackson became a Certified Tourism Ambassador for Franklin County. He enjoys sharing the area’s history and helping Chambersburg grow in positive, responsible ways.

Shannon Michael Jackson is a longtime Chambersburg community member. He holds a bachelor's degree in physics and a master's degree in military history, and has also studied business, accounting, and engineering. In 2023, he became a Certified Tourism Ambassador for Franklin County.

Jackson has worked in Chambersburg since 1993 and has been a Software Developer at WellSpan Health since 2001. He builds software that helps healthcare teams manage finances and services. His work focuses on problem-solving, accuracy, and accountability.

Shannon Michael Jackson currently works as a software developer at WellSpan Health.

Jackson currently works as a software developer at WellSpan Health.

Jackson’s run for Pennsylvania State Representative in District 89 is his first run for elected office.

2026 Pennsylvania General Election 

Working Families & Liveable Wages

Support childcare subsidies or income tax relief for childcare expenses

Support raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to at least $14.50 per hour

Priorities

Local Economy & Small Business

Invest in resources to help start new local businesses and grow existing ones

Support paid apprenticeships and work-based learning programs

Encourage higher wages to reduce worker turnover, retain talent, and keep families rooted in Franklin County

Affordable Housing

Support the expansion of affordable housing for low-income and working residents

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Defense of Civil Rights

What are your thoughts on the state budget process? What changes, if any, would you support so that the budget is enacted in a timely manner?
I don't have any arguments for or against how the highly complex budgeting process is assembled in Pennsylvania outside of arguments over how the tax revenues will be spent. I do oppose the use of bonds to allow deficit spending except in the most dire of emergencies. I also believe that the budget submission at or before the deadline should remain required and if not submitted on time, the legislative session remains open until it is submitted.

VOTE411: Pennsylvania State Representative District 89

Proposed gas and income tax holidays seem a nice idea helpful to many, but I argue it is not enough. Worse, how do I, as a state representative, sell the hardhat worker on the proposition that the money they would save from a gas tax holiday would compensate them for the cancelled infrastructure project from which they were going to receive a paycheck? Or how does a state representative tell the teacher or state service worker that they don’t have a job anymore because of significantly reduced state revenues forcing the budget cuts necessary to finance the income tax holiday?

Providing Economic Opportunity for the Franklin County Middle Class

Supports childcare subsidies or income-tax relief for childcare expenses.

Supports raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to at least $14.50 per hour.

Supports resources to start local businesses and grow existing ones.

Supports paid apprenticeships and work-based learning programs.

Supports expanding affordable housing for low-income and working residents.

Opposes using bonds for deficit spending except in the most dire emergencies.

Said gas and income-tax holidays are not enough to address economic challenges.

- Supports childcare subsidies or income-tax relief for childcare expenses.
- Supports raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to at least $14.50 per hour.
- Supports resources to start local businesses and grow existing ones.
- Supports paid apprenticeships and work-based learning programs.
- Supports expanding affordable housing for low-income and working residents.
- Opposes using bonds for deficit spending except in the most dire emergencies.
- Said gas and income-tax holidays are not enough to address economic challenges.

Economy

Healthcare Access

Expand the Pennie program to offset lost ACA premium credits and improve access for low-wage earners

Work to stop the loss of healthcare services in Franklin County and encourage new providers to fill service gaps

Support organizations that help residents access affordable healthcare

Healthcare

Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege. Until that goal is fully realized, I support:

Reducing healthcare costs

Limiting the outsized control of for-profit insurance companies that restrict access and effectively practice medicine without a license

Until U.S. citizens have had enough of paying the extremely high cost of for-profit health insurance and enduring pre-authorization excuses not to pay when it’s needed the most, and assuming the Federal government is unable to introduce a Medicare-for-all solution, perhaps the state could look at offering some form of tax-supported Medicaid health insurance lifeline to struggling working-class families to keep parents and their kids healthy

Supports expanding Pennie to offset lost Affordable Care Act premium credits and improve access for low-wage earners.

Plans to prevent the loss of healthcare services in Franklin County and encourage providers to fill service gaps.

Supports reducing healthcare costs and limiting for-profit insurers' control over access to care.

Proposes a tax-supported Medicaid insurance option for struggling working-class families if federal Medicare for All is unavailable.

- Supports expanding Pennie to offset lost Affordable Care Act premium credits and improve access for low-wage earners.
- Plans to prevent the loss of healthcare services in Franklin County and encourage providers to fill service gaps.
- Supports reducing healthcare costs and limiting for-profit insurers' control over access to care.
- Proposes a tax-supported Medicaid insurance option for struggling working-class families if federal Medicare for All is unavailable.

Healthcare

Quality Public Education

Increase funding for local public education, with a focus on recruiting and retaining teachers

Establish mandatory high school instruction (must pass) in:

Establish mandatory high school instruction (must pass) in:

The U.S. Constitution

The Bill of Rights

Constitutional Amendments

Potentially the Pennsylvania Constitution

Our children should understand and protect their constitutional birthright.

I opposed the privatization of public education both from the perspective of fairness to working class families and from the viewpoint of private educational institutions and the implications to them of accepting public funding.

Thoughts on Public Education

The use of “vouchers” or other conveyance of public money for the purpose of investing in sending students to private educational institutions is manifestly unfair to the children of working class and low-wage families. Many of these families cannot afford to attend private schools even with the help of “vouchers” or other method of public funding for each student. Taking money out of public schools to invest in privatized education unfairly takes resources away from maintaining public school facilities and paying good teachers for the families that cannot support sending their children to private schools. Effectively, that means wealthier families in public funded private schools are “more equal” than working and struggling low-wage families.

Just a few ideas would include:

Expanding public education to include offering pre-Kindergarten childcare on the educational starting end for young working-class families and minimal fee-based state University education for bachelor's degree education so that young adults don’t start out life burdened by catastrophic debt

Reorder state financial support of public education to be fully based on income taxation rather than local property taxation. This would allow the state to better and more fairly distribute funding to rural counties struggling to finance a good education for their children

Reorder state financial support of public education to be fully based on income taxation rather than local property taxation. This would allow the state to better and more fairly distribute funding to rural counties struggling to finance a good education for their children

Supports increased local public education funding focused on recruiting and retaining teachers.

Supports requiring high school instruction in the U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights, constitutional amendments, and potentially the Pennsylvania Constitution.

Opposes privatizing public education and using public funds for private-school vouchers.

Proposes public pre-kindergarten programs and childcare, as well as bachelor's-degree education at state universities for minimal fees.

Proposes funding public education entirely through income taxes rather than local property taxes.

- Supports increased local public education funding focused on recruiting and retaining teachers.
- Supports requiring high school instruction in the U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights, constitutional amendments, and potentially the Pennsylvania Constitution.
- Opposes privatizing public education and using public funds for private-school vouchers.
- Proposes public pre-kindergarten programs and childcare, as well as bachelor's-degree education at state universities for minimal fees.
- Proposes funding public education entirely through income taxes rather than local property taxes.

Education

Agriculture & Land Conservation

Protect Franklin County agriculture by:

Preventing farmland loss to warehouses

Blocking attempts to build AI data centers

Supporting land conservation, soil health improvements, and stream restoration

Should the state legislature enact laws concerning the impacts on water, energy, or land use from the development and operation of data centers? Would state regulation of data center development and operation interfere with the authority of municipalities to establish ordinances under the MPC (Municipal Planning Code)?
Yes, the state legislature should enact laws or a constitutional amendment to grant county governments the power to deny or allow the establishment of hyperscale data centers. The up or down decision must be final and not subject to operator litigation. Since these data centers at the current level of technology are so devastating to the environment it is hard to imagine any county government willingly allowing a data center to be built in their neighborhood.

Energy & Utilities

Support the unique power and utility services in Chambersburg

Encourage clean, sustainable energy projects throughout Franklin County

Incentivize ownership of warehouses to invest in installing solar arrays on their roofs and parking lots covered by solar arrays. A substantial percentage of the energy generated from these arrays must be made available to the local power network to reduce energy costs rather than just disappearing into the amorphous energy pool of the power utilities with no financial benefit coming back to local energy consumers

Supports preventing farmland loss to warehouses, blocking artificial-intelligence data centers, and supporting land conservation, soil health, and stream restoration.

Supports granting county governments final authority to approve or deny hyperscale data centers.

Encourages clean, sustainable energy projects in Franklin County.

Proposes incentives for solar arrays on warehouses that make a substantial share of their energy available to local power networks.

- Supports preventing farmland loss to warehouses, blocking artificial-intelligence data centers, and supporting land conservation, soil health, and stream restoration.
- Supports granting county governments final authority to approve or deny hyperscale data centers.
- Encourages clean, sustainable energy projects in Franklin County.
- Proposes incentives for solar arrays on warehouses that make a substantial share of their energy available to local power networks.

Energy & the Environment

What do you see as the most pressing issues facing residents of your district, and how would you address them?
1) Affordability of working families and farmers to survive soaring inflation in the grocery store and at the gas pump. 2) Keeping public education public hiring and retaining the best teachers and oppose the "school choice" argument for private school and charter school vouchers 3) Prevent the establishment of hyperscale AI data centers and the high voltage power lines that feed them with power and slow the building of warehouses 4) Prevent the establishment of ICE detention centers

Supports preventing the establishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers.

- Supports preventing the establishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers.

Public Safety

What changes, if any, would you support to enable better access, ensure security, and support the processes of our elections?
Knowing the people that run elections, I believe our elections are already secure including the use of mail-in ballots. I do support the establishment of non-partisan fair districting practices to stop the curse of political gerrymandering to silence minority political voices.

Campaign Finance Reform

I support changing Pennsylvania corporate law to ban corporate contributions to state and local political campaigns.

Donate

Believes Pennsylvania elections, including mail-in ballots, are already secure.

Supports nonpartisan practices for drawing electoral districts to prevent political gerrymandering.

Supports banning corporate contributions to state and local political campaigns.

- Believes Pennsylvania elections, including mail-in ballots, are already secure.
- Supports nonpartisan practices for drawing electoral districts to prevent political gerrymandering.
- Supports banning corporate contributions to state and local political campaigns.

Voting & Elections

LinkedIn

Twitter

Facebook

Instagram

Shannon Michael Jackson

- Plans to prevent the loss of healthcare services in Franklin County and encourage providers to fill service gaps.
- Supports reducing healthcare costs and limiting for-profit insurers' control over access to care.
- Proposes a tax-supported Medicaid insurance option for struggling working-class families if federal Medicare for All is unavailable.

Edward Krutsch

Buket Urgen

Rob Kauffman

- Your state representative represents the interests of your local district in the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives. The State House of Representatives, along with the State Senate, makes up your state lawmaking body: the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
- Your state representative can author, sponsor, and vote on bills that may become state laws, including introducing tax bills. 
- State representatives and their staff respond to constituent concerns and questions through emails, phone calls, and website announcements. 
- State representatives oversee the executive branch and can vote to overrule a veto by the Governor.  
- They are elected to two-year terms and have a salary of $106,000, with a 1-3% annual increase

Your representative and state lawmaker in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives