State Sen. Jake Corman Confirms Run for Governor

Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Bellefonte, formally announced on Monday night that he is running for governor, joining an already crowded GOP field seeking the nomination in 2022.

Long thought to be entering the race, the state Senate’s top-ranking Republican launched his campaign website and made the announcement on social media. In an interview with the Associated Press, Corman said he will distinguish himself from the double-digit field of candidates by emphasizing his experience and ability to break through gridlock.

“Someone who comes from the legislature, who understands the legislature, can work with the legislature to get good things accomplished is something that we need,” Corman told the AP. “I think we’re tired of sort of the gridlock and the back-and-forth between the two.”

The 57-year-old Bellefonte native originally planned to announce his candidacy at a private event in his hometown last week, but that was scrubbed when he tested positive for COVID-19.

Corman has served in the state Senate since 1999, after he won election to the seat previously held by his father, J. Doyle Corman, for 21 years.

He rose to Senate majority leader, the No. 2 post in the chamber, in 2015 and was elected by GOP members to the top-ranking position of president pro tempore in January.

Corman joins declared GOP candidates that include former U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, former U.S. Attorney William McSwain, Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Gale and former Chester County Chamber of Commerce CEO Guy Ciarrocchi, among others. It could also include state Sen. Doug Mastriano, a loyalist of former President Donald Trump who clashed with Corman over the handling of a legislative review of the 2020 election, which President Joe Biden won in Pennsylvania by more than 80,000 votes.

Whoever emerges with the Republican nomination, is likely to face current Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, who has no declared opponents for the Democratic nomination.

Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf is nearing the final year of his second term as governor and is ineligible to run again.