Five for Friday: Row Office Rumble

They may not make headlines like races for the House or Senate, but statewide elections for the commonwealth’s key row offices can have far-reaching effects for Pennsylvanians on issues ranging from municipal concerns to statewide initiatives. With races for state treasurer, attorney general and auditor general on the horizon, sitting lawmakers and other officials have thrown their hats in the ring and are beginning to hit the campaign trail. With that in mind, we wanted to take a deeper look at the offices and races ahead of 2024. 

City & State has your Five for Friday, looking at the state’s row office races, what they are and where they stand.

What are row offices?

The state’s executive offices – commonly known as row offices – got their name years ago when the departments were first listed in a row on the election ballot. Today, even with a wide range of services stemming from the executive branch, statewide elections are held for just the positions of state treasurer, attorney general and auditor general.  

Who’s running? 

State Treasurer

Treasurer Stacy Garrity is hoping her first-term record will propel her to reelection. Garrity, who upset then-Treasurer Joe Torsella – a Democrat – in 2020, has since made transparency initiatives and returning unclaimed property major priorities of her administration. 

Multiple Democrats have already lined up to take on Garrity in 2024. Democratic state Rep. Ryan Bizzarro announced his bid for treasurer on Sept. 26, accompanied by a video in which he accused Garrity of spreading “extreme agendas.” 

Also running as a Democrat is Erin McClelland, a former substance abuse and mental health counselor and a nominee for Congress in 2014 and 2016, according to her campaign website. 

Attorney General 

With Attorney General Michelle Henry not running in 2024, there will be a wide-open race for AG next year. Thus far, each of the candidates – now including one Republican and four Democrats – has a bevy of experience at the local, county and state levels. 

Democrat Jared Solomon, a Philadelphia state representative and the latest entrant in the race, is a former JAG officer in the Army Reserve who currently chairs the House Veteran Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee. 

Eugene DePasquale, former auditor general and three-term state representative, served as the state’s top fiscal watchdog and investigator for nearly eight years through most of then-Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration. 

York County District Attorney David Sunday, the lone Republican in the race, previously gained notoriety in the region for his appointment as special assistant United States attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania to prosecute federal gang, gun and drug cases. 

Keir Bradford-Grey, Philadelphia’s former chief public defender, is currently a partner in Montgomery McCracken’s litigation department and was previously recruited by Gov. Josh Shapiro in 2012 – when he was a Montgomery County commissioner – to be Montgomery County's chief public defender. 

Joe Khan, former Bucks County Solicitor, has spent time as a prosecutor in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office and U.S. Attorney’s Office and is a partner at Yardley’s Curtin & Heefner LLP as a public sector attorney. 

Auditor General

Republican Timothy DeFoor made history in January 2021 when he became the first person of color elected to statewide office in Pennsylvania. Now, he’ll be looking to convince voters to elect him to another term. As the state’s top fiscal watchdog, DeFoor has kept busy leading an office that audits everything from school districts to volunteer firefighter organizations. 

Like Garrity, DeFoor has some early Democratic competition. State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta announced his intention to seek the Democratic nomination for auditor general back in March, and former House Speaker and current state Rep. Mark Rozzi is also reportedly considering a run, per ABC 27. 

Why should you care? 

The row offices are among the highest positions in the commonwealth. Officials in the offices of treasurer, attorney general and auditor general oversee the commonwealth's fiscal and legal affairs and can act independently of the governor. 

The treasurer both directly and indirectly manages more than $100 billion of the commonwealth’s funds, including through a seat on the governing boards for the state’s pension funds for retired teachers and bureaucrats.

The auditor general maintains all fiscal and accounting records to ensure compliance and reveal any misuse and malfeasance in the spending of public funds. 

And the attorney general, as the commonwealth’s chief law enforcement officer, serves as chief legal counsel to state agencies, the legislature and the commonwealth’s public interest. The attorney general can issue formal opinions on laws and regulations, represent the state and agencies in court and handle statewide criminal prosecutions.