Newly elected leaders assume offices today
HARRISBURG — Two key statewide offices plagued by scandal and corruption over the last few years will get new leaders today.
Pennsylvania Attorney General-elect Josh Shapiro and Treasurer-elect Joe Torsella, both Democrats from Montgomery County, will be sworn into office, having been elected on pledges to bring new ideas and restore confidence in the agencies’ work.
Also being sworn in today: Democrat Eugene DePasquale, who was elected to a second four-year term as auditor general.
Mr. Shapiro, a former Montgomery County commissioner, will be inheriting an office whose reputation was dealt repeated blows over the last four years by the actions of its previous elected leader, Kathleen Kane. Kane, a Scranton Democrat, was convicted last summer on criminal charges that she abused the power of her office to exact revenge on a perceived enemy.
Before her resignation, she exposed what came to be known as Porngate — a scandal involving the exchange of pornography and offensive content among prosecutors, judges, defense attorneys and others over government computers.
The scandal tarnished the office’s reputation and overshadowed much of its work.
Mr. Shapiro campaigned hard on a promise to improve morale and refocus the office on its core mission of rooting out public corruption and protecting consumers, the elderly and children.
Mr. Torsella, too, will be taking over an office with a troubled past.
The last elected state treasurer — Rob McCord — resigned in disgrace in early 2015 as he prepared to plead guilty to federal corruption charges of attempting to shake down state contractors during his unsuccessful run for governor.
Mr. Torsella, a deputy mayor under then-Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell and the onetime CEO of the National Constitution Center, campaigned on increasing transparency; minimizing the use of outside money managers to invest taxpayer money; and growing participation in the state-run college savings account programs.
He has said he supports eliminating the use of third-party firms that get the equivalent of a finder’s fee for connecting money managers with treasury officials and contracts — a practice that has played prominently into corruption investigations related to Mr. McCord’s case.
A Pittsburgh native, Mr. DePasquale, a Democrat from York County, was first elected in 2012 and has touted his record of aggressively tracking state spending and recommending changes to make government more cost-effective.