Although polls have not been kind to Tom Corbett as of late, the governor filed his petition signatures yesterday and the large amount alluded to widespread support for the incumbent.
Both Corbett and his Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley amassed over 50,000 signatures between the two of them, with Corbett receiving a whopping 27,747 signatures and Cawley receiving 26,680. Governor Corbett received more than 100 signatures from 50 different Pa. counties, and he made sure to get at least one signature from every county in the state.
To be placed on the ballot for the May primary, it was only required of Corbett that he receive 2,000 signatures, and 100 signatures or more had to come from 10 different counties. Corbett vastly exceeded those requirements.
“Over the last three years, we have kept our promises and put Pennsylvania on the path to a brighter future by reforming Harrisburg, keeping taxes low and creating more than 150,000 private sector jobs. I am humbled by the tireless commitment of our grassroots supporters who showed their enthusiasm for our campaign and are working to give us four more years to continue fighting for our agenda of ‘More Jobs, Less Taxes.’ It has been an honor to serve the people of Pennsylvania and I look forward to the bright future that lies just ahead for our Commonwealth,” said Corbett.
Cawley was only required to amass 1,000 signatures with 5 counties contributing 100 or more to that grand total. Like Corbett, Cawley exceeded expectations.
“Pennsylvania is stronger today because of the tough decisions Governor Tom Corbett made to put us back on a path towards prosperity and I look forward to serving with him a second term,” Cawley said. “Pennsylvanians can’t afford to return to the tax-and-spend policies our opponents support and I am confident that voters will soundly reject their attempts to bring the Obama-style, big government agenda to Harrisburg.”
This type of grassroots support for the Corbett/Cawley team bodes well for them going forward. For Corbett, his total is the most impressive governor signature showing to date, as it even comes out ahead of Allyson Schwartz’s 22,000 signatures, and Jim Cawley’s total dwarfs anything that the other Lt. Gov. candidates have been able to do produce thus far.
Corbett will face Bob Guzzardi in the Republican primary in May, if Guzzardi survives any petition challenge that may come his way. Jim Cawley is running unopposed as of right now.
3 Responses
Wow – they managed to track down and get signatures from every single one of their supporters. That’s certainly applause worthy.
That seems like a poor use of time. Also, prediction.
Jay Paterno’s signatures get challenged by Brad Koplinski and/or Mark Smith, and he gets thrown off the ballot.
From Keystone Politics,
The Gov Race:
Allyson Schwartz: 22,000 signatures from 34 counties
Rob McCord: 13,000 signatures from 61 counties
Tom Wolf: “more than 12,000 signatures” from “more than 50 counties”
John Hanger: 5,356 signatures from 40 counties
Katie McGinty: 5,272 signatures from 40 counties
Jack Wagner: Successfully filed, has not released a number, I refuse to count them manually.
Jo Ellen Litz: Did not file anything with the Department of State by 5pm deadline, will not be on the ballot.
Lt. Governor:
Mike Stack: 9,600 signatures
Brad Koplinski: 6,016 signatures with at least one from each county
Mark Critz: 3,864 signatures from 25 counties
Brandon Neuman: 2,463 signatures from 19 counties (manual count)
Mark Smith: 2,296 signatures from 18 counties (manual count)
Jay Paterno: 1,117 signatures from 17 counties (manual count, plus the Department of State put multiple counties in wrong electronic folders)
Brenda Alton: Did not file anything with the Department of State by 5pm deadline, will not be on the ballot.