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Reader Poll: Who Should Be The Next PAGOP Chair?

Val DiGiorgio’s tenure as Chair of Pennsylvania’s Republican Party officially ended yesterday when he resigned after the Philadelphia Inquirer’s report of him exchanging sexually charged messages and an “explicit photo” with Philadelphia Republican Council candidate, Irina Goldstein. 

DiGiorgio’s exit means an important race for who will lead the party in the state prior to President Donald Trump’s 2020 reelection effort. Will the next chair be a Trump ally or someone with party roots prior to the President carrying the state? 

A number of influential Republicans are reportedly being discussed as a replacement to lead the party for the next election cycle. Some of the names that have surfaced thus far are former Rep. Lou Barletta (R-Luzerne), former state GOP general counsel Lawrence Tabas, vice chair of the PAGOP Bernie Comfort, former state director for Trump’s 2016 campaign Ted Christian, and former state Rep. Gordon Denlinger (R-Lancaster). 

Montgomery County GOP Chair Elizabeth Preate Havey, who was reportedly being discussed as a candidate for the position, reached out to PoliticsPA to confirm she is definitively not seeking the PAGOP Chair. She had 214 votes in the poll before her name was removed. Chairman of the Southeast PA GOP caucus Andy Reilly was also reportedly mentioned as a candidate to succeed DiGiorgio, but a spokesperson for him contacted PoliticsPA to confirm that he is also not seeking the PAGOP Chair. He had 424 votes in the poll before his name was removed. 

So we ask: Who Should Be the Next PAGOP Chair? 

The poll will close at 4:30 pm on July 3. 

This article was updated with a comment from Elizabeth Preate Havey and Andy Reilly ruling out a run for the position.

Reader Poll: Who Should Be The Next PAGOP Chair?


  • Lawrence Tabas (58%)
  • Ted Christian (32%)
  • Bernie Comfort (6%)
  • Lou Barletta (3%)
  • Someone Else (2%)
  • Gordon Denlinger (1%)

Total Voters: 10,857

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61 Responses

  1. Saw a comment up here earlier about Liz & Andy, it’s true. They are big Val supporters, never Trumpers and self serving political hacks who do very crooked, underhanded, and downright immoral things. People in their respective counties know all about it.

    We need no more continuation of that like an authoritarian state. We need to restore honor, ethics and integrity. Time for Tabas. #TabasForChair

  2. Our parties are so rigged by a 2-party system, it needs to end. Strong principled candidates don’t even have a shot against the money and control of the political elitist structure.

    Way too many people in the general public, state committee and especially on county committees do not want primary endorsements for candidates, that’s why we have primaries, so R voters can select the best candidates.

    We should be totally against any candidate for PA GOP Chair who favors state endorsement of candidates. Our county committees should NOT endorse in the primaries, we see where that has gotten us with Gleason and then VD who pushed it to no end.

    Primary endorsements should not even be mentioned at state committee meetings except to hear it won’t be done any more.

    Tabas or anybody who wants my (our) support, we need to hear this from the candidate for state Chair.

  3. Whoever takes this job will oversee a huge loss in PA in 2020, not sure why they would.

  4. Ted Christian needs to stay focused on working the Trump campaign. Lawrence can honestly bring this party where it needs to be. He also knows election law. We need that so we dont end up with Democrats winning Senate seats who shouldn’t have been in the ballot. Honest guy.

    1. correct on all counts, and i had been involved in the guzzardi campaign which he was responsible for having squelched

  5. We do not need a Val DiGenitals DiGiorgio clone. The people have had enough of the establishment swamp.

    Montgomery County Attorney Sean Gale places people before politics!

  6. I’m not so sure I believe any of these people are the right choice. We need a chair who will uphold the constitution, support fiscal responsibility, and do so even when it means speaking out against the establishment or the president.

  7. Court packing, redistricting, voter ID, etc…so many big legal issues to fight. The chair needs to be able to do so. Tabas is the clear choice.

    1. We need someone to stand up for the average Pennsylvanian and tell King Scarnati that districts looking like pretzels is simply wrong for Pennsylvania and the spirit of Democracy. And WRONG for America and the belief in fundamental fairness.

    1. Rebecca Warren, but her passion is the court system because of what happened to her father & brother. Val DiGiorgio screwed her over & strong-armed others to deny her the Primary on Superior Court even though more qualified than Peck & King.

  8. Might as well give it to Jason Gottesman. He’s already ruined his reputation with the terrible spin job he’s done for the GOP that they should at least reward him for it.

  9. My vote: person who causes Trump to lose by the largest margin in Pennsylvania.

  10. Tabas is the obvious choice and was so in 2017. He only lost by one vote and that was because Val and his cronies bribed and threatened people. The State Committee members, who are mostly sheep, should be embarrassed. Comfort, Reilly, and Havey should not even be considered because they are so tightly associated with DiGiorgio. This regime needs to go….for good. The Republican Party is ruined for years to come. Val had more baggage than a 99 car freight train yet the people in the Southeast thought he walked on water even though his win/lose record is pathetic. The judicial candidates will lose in the General Election because of this nonsense and because of the corrupt endorsement process that people are still fuming about. Trump has zero chance of winning next year either. Tabas is the only hope to clean up this mess that Val and Bernie left, but it will be no easy task. Good luck.

    1. Tabas is an excellent choice indeed. He can undo the damage that Never-Trumper DiGiorgio has done.

      1. So DiGiorgio spends two years plus doing everything but sitting on Donald Trump’s lap and asking him for presents and the Trump groupies still hate him. There’s a reason the grownups view them with such complete contempt.

        1. This has nothing to do with The Donald; Val behaved poorly and properly resigned promptly.

    2. Very interesting analysis, but what makes you correct or right? Tabas has reputation himself, & I wouldn’t brag about it…
      I agree the state party has some sincere & significant problems starting with the loss of the governorship & USS as well as the PA State Supreme Court intervening in politics with some gerrymandering of their own….best wishes or my deepest condolences to the next state chairman, whichever is appropriate….

  11. A big part of this job is raising money. Another big part is dealing with election law issues. Comfort can’t do either. Barletta isn’t good at fundraising and isn’t a lawyer. Christian can’t raise money and isn’t inspiring. Tabas seems the smart play.

    1. Are you kidding me? The only thing Larry did in the Gleason regime was help him lose the Supreme Court and find legal justification for the chairman to pressure members into buying insurance through his agency. No wonder he lost in 2017!

      1. He is the top 5 election law lawyer in the US. He has won many cases. Actually tried to help the PAGOP after he lost.

        1. Oh, you mean he helped lose the redistricting case that then lost the party three seats in Congress? I guess if, under his watch, people actually cared about electing Republican Supreme Court judges, he wouldn’t have had to try and then fail to bail out the former Chairman’s lack of focus.

    2. You say a big part of the job of is fundraising (true) then say Tabas?? Nice guy and lawyer, but what has he ever raised?

      1. This is in response to Carlos’ analysis, #TabasforChair

        Some of us were calling out the VD thing for awhile as well. All on State Committee need to start doing the right thing—people before politics. Grassroots over the corrupted establishment. No more party insiders with their despicable backroom dealings.

  12. That is such a misogynistic thing to say Bob. The Koch brothers are the swamp and old men like you. You’re just jealous I turned down you’re advances at the ATRO event a few years ago.

    1. I talked to Ted Christian this evening while he took a break from doing nothing but voting all day in this legitimate poll. He wanted me to assure everyone that if he’s elected the new chairman, he will immediately name Suzi Goldnerfinger as director. He said he needs totally sane, definitely non-violent never criminals to be the face of the Republican Party. Together, he said, they will become the swamp to drain the swamp. No sacrifice too small, always looking at the bigger picture.

      1. This post is NOT me but no doubt some establishment slimeball committing fraud as they did in this past Primary and has been reported.

  13. I heard there’s this super hot grassroots activist in Montgomery County named Susan Jane Goldfinger who would fit the job perfectly.

    She’s a MAGA goddess with a great temperament. Never ever been in trouble before. #KAG

        1. That is such a misogynistic thing to say Bob. The Koch brothers are the swamp and old men like you. You’re just jealous I turned down you advanced at the ATRO event a few years ago.

    1. Winning isn’t exactly Ray’s specialty. Ask Scott Wagner.

      Boom, roasted.

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