A look at the candidates on the 2024 Pennsylvania ballot

The Brown and White compiled a list of the candidates running for office in the upcoming general election as they would appear on a ballot for a voter registered in South Bethlehem. Pennsylvania voters can vote in person or by mail without an excuse. 

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES 

The U.S. Constitution requires a presidential candidate to be a natural-born U.S. citizen, at least 35 years old and a resident of the U.S. for at least 14 years. Presidents can serve up to two four-year terms. 

The president acts as the head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces and is responsible for:

• implementing and enforcing the laws written by Congress.
• appointing heads of federal agencies and commissions. 
• signing legislation into law or vetoing any bills enacted by Congress.
• negotiating and signing treaties with other nations to be ratified by the Senate. 
• issuing executive orders.
• granting clemencies for any federal crimes. 

President Joseph R. Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and the appointed cabinet comprise the current executive branch. Read more about the president’s office here.  

Kamala Harris is the Democratic party’s candidate for president. Vice President Harris is currently serving under President Biden. Previously, she was the Attorney General of California from 2011 to 2017 and a California senator from 2017 to 2021. The Harris campaign is focused on fighting for a “new way forward” that protects fundamental freedoms, strengthens the economy, lowers the cost of health care and cuts taxes for middle-class families. Harris has chosen Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate. Read more about the Harris campaign here. 

Donald J. Trump is the Republican party’s candidate for president. As the former president from 2016 to 2020, Trump is running again after losing the 2020 election to current President Biden. Before serving as president, Trump was a businessman and TV personality. In this election, the Trump campaign focuses on increased border security, strengthening the economy and returning to Republican values, along with a continued “America First” platform. Trump has chosen Republican Senator JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate. Read more about the Trump campaign here. 

Chase Oliver is the Libertarian Party’s presidential candidate. Oliver previously ran for Georgia’s 5th district to complete the term of the late John Lewis in 2020. In 2022, he ran for the U.S. Senate. His presidential campaign is focused on lowering inflation and the cost of homes while highlighting the downsides of a two-party system. Oliver has chosen Mike ter Maat, an economist and former police officer, as his running mate. Read more about the Oliver campaign here. 

Jill Stein is the Green Party’s presidential nominee. As an activist and physician, Stein has prioritized advocating for clean and healthy environments. She has also worked to reform the campaign finance system and increase election transparency. In 2003, Stein co-founded the non-profit Massachusetts Coalition for Health Communities, which advocates for local green economies, environmental protections and labor rights. Her campaign is focused on ensuring justice for systematically disadvantaged populations, environmental reform, healthcare and world peace. Stein has chosen Butch Ware as her running mate. Read more about the Stein campaign here.  

U.S. SENATE CANDIDATES (PENNSYLVANIA)

The U.S. Constitution requires that all Senate candidates be at least 30 years old, have been citizens for at least nine years and reside in the state they wish to represent at the time of their election. One Pennsylvania U.S. Senate seat is up for election in the 2024 general election. Dem. Sen. Robert Casey currently holds the seat up for election. Dem. Sen. John Fetterman has held the second seat since 2023. 

As Pennsylvania’s U.S. senators, the two elected officials can:

• draft, debate and vote on laws while representing the state’s interests. 
• confirm presidential appointments. 
• ratify international treaties through a two-thirds majority. 

The Senate oversees all federal agencies and programs through several different committees. Read more about the Senate here. 

Six-Year Term 

ROBERT P. CASEY JR is the Democratic Party’s candidate for the Pennsylvania seat in the U.S. Senate. Casey has been a Pennsylvania senator since 2007. Before serving in the Senate, Casey served as auditor general for two terms after practicing law for several years. As a Pennsylvania senator, he has focused on strengthening the Affordable Care Act as chair of the Senate special committee. In more recent years, he’s become a defender of abortion access and has vowed to be tough on China to protect jobs in Pennsylvania and roll back substantial corporate tax breaks. Read more about the Casey campaign here.     

DAVE MCCORMICK is the Republican Party’s candidate for the Pennsylvania seat in the U.S. Senate. McCormick served in the U.S. Army during the Gulf War, receiving a Bronze Star for his service. In 2005, he was nominated by the Bush administration to be the under-secretary of commerce. During the Obama administration, McCormick joined  Bridgewater, the world’s largest hedge fund, as their president and later CEO. In 2022, he ran for the Pennsylvania U.S. Senate seat but lost during the Republican primaries. During this election cycle, he is focused on the benefits of U.S. involvement in China and how his time as CEO at Bridgewater qualifies him to navigate  U.S.-China relations. He’s opposed to abortion except in the cases of rape, incest or to protect the life of the mother, and he doesn’t support a federal ban. Read more about the McCormick campaign here. 

JOHN C. THOMAS is the Libertarian Party’s candidate for the Pennsylvania seat in the U.S. Senate. A devout Christian, Thomas is an educator who has worked in public, private and charter schools. He previously unsuccessfully ran for the board of the Armstrong School District in 2023. Read more about the Thomas campaign here. 

LEILA HAZOU is the Green Party’s candidate for the Pennsylvania seat in the U.S. Senate. She runs a soap and candle shop in Pike County. Before moving to Pennsylvania, she was a project manager for an investment firm in New York City. Hazou’s campaign is focused on fighting for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. Read more about the Hazou campaign here. 

MARTY SELKER is the Constitution Party’s candidate for the Pennsylvania seat in the U.S. Senate. Selker is a former small business owner, construction worker and current truck driver. He is a current member of the Clarion-Limestone school board. In this election, his campaign is focused on firearm rights and protecting against government overreach. Read more about the Selker campaign here. 

ATTORNEY GENERAL

The Attorney General of Pennsylvania’s primary role is to be the Commonwealth’s chief law enforcement officer, responsible for prosecuting organized crime and public corruption. The role also entails investigating and prosecuting criminal matters relating to the public duties of state officials and employees, corrupt organizations and chargers referred by a Commonwealth agency. The Pennsylvania constitution stipulates that all Attorney General candidates be U.S. citizens, older than 30 years old, have lived in Pennsylvania for at least seven years and be a member of the bar of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.       

In 2020, Democrat Josh Shapiro ran for re-election and won. Two years into his second term as Attorney General, Shapiro ran for Governor of Pennsylvania and was elected. Shapiro selected Democrat Michelle Henry to finish out the last two years of his term. Read more about the Attorney General’s office here. 

Four-Year Term 

Eugene DePasquale is the Democratic Party’s candidate for attorney general. After attending Widener University Commonwealth Law School, DePasquale served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for three two-year terms, representing York County as state auditor general for a maximum of two four-year terms. In 2020, he ran as the Democratic nominee for the 10th Congressional District. During his years in office, DePasquale has advocated for government transparency and minimizing government spending. In this year’s election, he is focused on safeguarding abortion access, prosecuting hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community and cracking down on businesses that violate consumer rights. Read more about the DePasquale campaign here. 

Dave Sunday is the Republican Party’s candidate for attorney general. After serving in the U.S. Navy and earning his law degree from Widener University Commonwealth Law School, Sunday began his career as a prosecutor battling the opioid epidemic, gang and illegal gun violence, and prioritizing public safety. Serving as York County’s district attorney since 2018, Sunday advocates for the criminal justice system to be more responsive to those who unwittingly get entangled in it. Sunday is a proponent of accountability and redemption, and he has identified the weak border policies and the fentanyl crisis as  top issues for Pennsylvania and the country in this election. Read more about the Sunday campaign here. 

Robert Cowburn is the Libertarian Party’s candidate for attorney general. After earning his law degree from Suffolk University Law School, Cowburn focused on civil and business litigation work and appeared in several cases before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. He’s the current president of the Libertarian Party in Pennsylvania, speaking out about regulatory overreach at the state and federal levels. His campaign is focused on education reform, removing third-party election barriers and rooting out public corruption. Read more about the Cowburn campaign here.   

Richard L. Weiss is the Green Party’s candidate for attorney general. After earning his law degree from the University of Denver, Weiss practiced as an attorney. He supports criminal justice reform as a proponent of restorative justice in some cases as an alternative to incarceration, establishing citizen’s police review boards with strong police professionalism standards, decriminalizing or legalizing cannabis and reinstating a ban on assault weapons. Read more about the Weiss campaign here.   

Justin Magill is the Constitution Party’s candidate for attorney general. After graduating from Roger Williams University School of Law, Magill served in the U.S. Army, and he runs a private law practice specializing in estate planning and business startups. The Constitution Party opposes abortion, same-sex marriage and requiring gun registration. Magill is a strong proponent of the right to life and for parents to determine the education their children receive. Read more about the Magill campaign here. 

Eric Settle is the Forward Party’s candidate for attorney general. After attending George Washington Law School, Settle served as deputy general counsel under former Rep. Gov. Tom Ridge. Throughout his legal career, he has focused on healthcare law and was a part of the 2000s law that required insurance companies to cover autism services for individuals under 21. During his campaign, he focused on monitoring healthcare system mergers, cracking down on financial schemes and reducing the number of illegal weapons. Settle also supports abortion rights as they currently stand. Read more about the Settle campaign here.  

AUDITOR GENERAL

The auditor general conducts audits of public entities in Pennsylvania to ensure that they follow all laws and regulations. They also work to increase transparency and government accountability, and they set accounting standards. In Pennsylvania, the auditor general office ensures all state programs operate as they should and all public funding is spent responsibly, ensuring fiscal responsibility on a state level. Timothy L. DeFoor has been Pennsylvania’s 50th Auditor General since 2021. Read more about the Auditor General’s office here.   

Four-Year Term 

Malcolm Kenyatta is the Democratic Party’s candidate for auditor general. He is a community activist for diversity and inclusion efforts at the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia. In 2018, he was elected as the North Philly representative in the General Assembly at age 28, making him the first openly LGBTQ+ person of color to serve in this role. Kenyatta is a proponent of a higher minimum wage, stricter gun laws and LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination protections. In 2023, President Biden appointed Kenyatta the chair of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans. He’s currently also seeking reelection in the Pennsylvania state House. Read more about the Kenyatta campaign here.  

Tim DeFoor is the Republican Party’s candidate for auditor general. DeFoor is Penslyvania’s current Auditor General. He previously served as the special agent for the state attorney general’s office, focusing his time on Medicaid fraud. DeFoor was also previously the Dauphin County controller. During his current term as auditor general, DeFoor has focused on auditing local pension plans and volunteer firefighters’ relief associations and reviewing state-level pandemic policies. In his re-election campaign, DeFoor vows to continue his work to transform the auditor general’s office in a nonpartisan way, increase overall transparency and cut unnecessary government spending. Read more about the DeFoor campaign here.  

Reece Smith is the Libertarian Party’s candidate for auditor general. Smith works in financial services. His campaign highlights the gaps in the current auditor general office, pledging to investigate how politicians and bureaucrats use taxpayer money. Read more about the Smith campaign here.  

Alan ‘Bob’ Goodrich is the Constitution Party’s candidate for auditor general. Goodrich, a 25-year Army veteran and retired lenient colonel, runs a private Christian School. He previously ran for auditor general in 2012 but dropped out of the race for the county commissioner last year. Read more about the Goodrich campaign here. 

Eric Anton is the American Solidarity Party’s candidate for auditor general. The party’s platform is focused on having a pluralistic state that values the common good informed by the Christian religion. Read more about the Anton campaign here. 

STATE TREASURER

The Pennsylvania State Treasurer is the custodian of more than $150 billion in Commonwealth funds. They are responsible for:

• receiving and depositing state monies.
• managing investments.
• overseeing all withdrawals and deposits from state agencies.
• And conducting any necessary investigation of loss, theft or fraud.

The Pennsylvania Constitution stipulates that State treasurer candidates must be at least 21 years old, a U.S. citizen, and a Pennsylvania resident for at least one year before the election. The current state treasurer is Republican Stacy Garrity. Read more about the State Treasurer office here.   

Four-Year Term

Erin McClelland is the Democratic Party’s candidate for state treasurer. McClelland has spent most of her career in substance abuse and mental health counseling, project management, and program directing. From 2015 to 2024, McClelland was a project manager for the Allegheny County Department of Human Services. In 2014 and 2016, McClelland ran as the Democratic nominee for Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District but lost to then-incumbent Republican Keith Rothfus. In this election, McClelland said she would protect workers and taxpayers from dangerous, unregulated financial products. She has also said she would ensure that businesses in Pennsylvania don’t use goods from countries with records of human rights abuses. Read more about the McClelland campaign here.  

Stacy Garrity is the Republican Party’s candidate for state treasurer. She’s Pennsylvania’s current state treasurer. Garrity is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel, serving three tours from 1991 to 2008. She received two Bronze Stars and the Legion of Merit award. In her re-election, she is focused on increasing transparency, enhancing public access to state budget and spending information, and reducing wasteful spending. During her current term, Garrity has worked to give back unclaimed properties that were often abandoned due to relocation or oversight by upgrading the database and system for the return of these properties. Read more about the Garrity campaign here. 

Nick Ciesielski is the Libertarian Party’s candidate for state treasurer. Ciesielski has worked as a mechanical engineer and currently chairs the Libertarian Party of Westmoreland County. In this election, he’s focused on privatizing as many government-run services as possible, increasing reliance on alternative assets and reducing runaway spending. Read more about the Ciesielski campaign here.   

Troy Bowman is the Constitution Party’s candidate for state treasurer. He currently chairs the Lancaster County Constitution Party and is the treasurer of Pennsylvania’s Constitution Party. Read more about the Bowman campaign here.  

Chris Foster is the Forward Party’s candidate for state treasurer. Foster has previously worked as a tennis professional and a clinical subjects coordinator at the University of Michigan’s Medical School. The Forward party is a centrist party that former presidential candidate Andrew Yang backs. They hope to qualify as a minor political party in Pennsylvania by gaining 2% of the highest vote-getters total statewide and in a minimum of 10 countries. Read more about the Foster campaign here.  

REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS, 7TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

The U.S. House of Representatives introduce new bills and resolutions representing their constituents’ interests to the House of Representatives floor. The U.S. Constitution requires that House candidates be at least 25 years old, U.S. citizens for at least seven years and residents of the state they represent at the time of their election. 

The House of Representatives holds hearings and votes on new legislation. There are currently 17 congressional districts in Pennsylvania. All of Northampton County is in the 7th congressional district, currently represented by Dem. Rep.Susan Wild. Read more about the House of Representatives here. 

Two-Year Term 

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild is the Democratic Party’s candidate for Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District. Wild has been the Lehigh Valley’s house representative since 2018. Before entering politics, Wild was a lawyer and was the former solicitor of Allentown. Wild’s re-election platform is focused on stimulating the economy by building a business consensus and guaranteeing access to health care. She’s focused on being a community advocate and voice for the working class. Read more about the Wild campaign here.  

Ryan Mackenzie is the Republican Party’s candidate for Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District. Mackenzie is the current representative for the 187th Legislative District in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, serving parts of Lehigh County. Before his time as a state representative, Mackenzie was the policy director at the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry after earning his real estate license. Mackenzie’s campaign is focused on border security, lowering crime rates and tackling inflation to make America stronger for his constituents. Read more about the Mackenzie campaign here. 

REPRESENTATIVE IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, 135TH LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT

The Pennsylvania General Assembly consists of an upper house, the Pennsylvania State Senate and a lower house, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, located in Harrisburg, the state’s capital. Currently, the Democratic Party controls the governor’s office and the lower house, while the Republican Party controls the upper house. Like Congress, the General Assembly is bicameral but has four-year and two-year terms,and it focuses on more localized issues as they are closer to their constituents.  

The Pennsylvania Constitution stipulates that general assembly candidates be citizens and inhabitants of the state for four years and inhabitants of their respective districts one year before their election. They also must reside in their districts during their term of service. 

There are 203 House Legislative districts and 50 Senate Legislative districts in Pennsylvania. Bethlehem is in the 18th Senate district, currently represented by Dem. Lisa M. Boscola, who was re-elected to the position in 2022. Bethlehem is in the 135th House district, represented by Dem. Steven Samuelson, who is up for re-election this year. Read more about the General Assembly here. 

Two-Year Term

Steve Samuelson is the Democratic Party’s candidate for the General Assembly House of Representatives in the 135th legislative district, which covers most of Bethlehem. Samuelson,  ‘86, is in his 12th term as a Pennsylvania House of Representatives member. During his time in office, he has prioritized senior citizens.  He aims to focus on taxes and rent rebates in his bid for re-election and advocates against gerrymandering. Samuelson is the chairman of the House Finance Committee. Read more about the Samuelson campaign here. 

AMENDMENTS 

Northampton County Home Rule Charter Amendment Article V District Attorney Section 501. Titles and Status 

“Shall the electorate of Northampton Country approve a change in the Northampton County Home Rule Charter Article V, District Attorney, Section 501 to impose term limits on the District Attorney of Northampton Country commencing with the terms of office which begins in January of 2028?”  

If approved, this amendment would restrict Northampton District Attorney to a maximum of two consecutive four-year terms.