Introducing the candidate spotlight series

There are a total of 228 legislative seats up for election this November in Pennsylvania – 25 in the Senate and all 203 in the House of Representatives. Pennsylvania has the largest full-time legislature in the country.

With so many candidates on the ballot across the Commonwealth, Broad + Liberty will run a series of interviews over the summer to highlight Pennsylvania State Representative and Senate candidates running in the general election in November. The series is open to any candidate appearing on the ballot regardless of political affiliation. 

We, at Broad + Liberty, believe that an informed electorate is essential to a flourishing Republic. To that end, we want to give every candidate running for the House and Senate the opportunity to share their vision for our Commonwealth and their respective districts. We will run as many submissions over the summer that we receive to give our readers key insights into each candidate.

This series will be similar to the one we ran last year highlighting school director candidates. We received and ran submissions from a total of fifty candidates, including forty-six registered Republicans, three registered Democrats, and one registered Libertarian across five counties in twenty-one school districts.

Each candidate for the state Senate and state House of Representative will answer a series of questions, which are really intended to be guidelines, to provide consistency across the interviews. Ultimately, we want to provide all candidates the opportunity to present their authentic selves, what motivated them to seek public office, and what they hope to accomplish if elected. Answers to the questions will be printed as submitted with minimal editing for length and clarity.

Submissions are open now and we will continue to accept them through August 30, 2024. Each applicant will be asked to submit a headshot and answers to the following questions either in a Word document or in the body of an email. Submissions should be emailed to barosica@broadandliberty.com.

1. Please list your name, political party, district number and geographic region, and your current occupation.
2. What is the most important issue impacting Pennsylvania?
3. What is the most important issue impacting your district?
4. What do you consider your greatest professional accomplishment?
5. If you could pass one piece of legislation, what would it be and why?
6. What aspects of state government are you the least satisfied with?
7. What was the best piece of Pennsylvania legislation passed in the last four years?
8. What is your favorite thing to do in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania state senators serve staggered, four-year terms and half of the Senate is up for election every two years. With a total of fifty senators, there are twenty-five seats up for election this year. State Representatives run every two years, therefore, all 203 seats will be on the ballot this year.

In order to run for office, Senate candidates must be 25, and House candidates must be 21 years of age. All candidates are required to have lived in the state for four years and specifically in their respective district for one year before the election. Once elected, they must continue to reside in their district for the duration of the term of service. Members of the House and Senate earn an annual salary of $102,844.

For more information on the series, please contact Beth Ann Rosica at barosica@broadandliberty.com.