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What’s Happening Today
The Basic Education Funding Commission will hold a hearing at 1 p.m. in Harrisburg.

What We’re Hearing
State Representative Dawn Keefer formally announced her candidacy for State Senate in the 31st District, which serves residents in Cumberland and York counties, this morning.

Start Your Day Smart
The PoliticsPA Playbook gives you all today’s PA political headlines in an easy-to-read format. All by 8 AM. And it’s free. Subscribe now.

Top Story

1. Quinnipiac Poll: Biden Surpasses Trump; Casey Holds 10-Point Edge on McCormick

“For the first time, President Joe Biden has a numerical advantage over former President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday.

Biden received 49 percent support of the 1,680 registered voters in the Keystone State, while Trump pulled in 46 percent with a margin of error at +/- 2.4 percent. Trump led Biden, 47-45, in October and 47-46 in June.

“A good bump for Biden at a time when there is not a lot of good things happening,” said Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy.” (PoliticsPA)

Related

Deluzio Becomes First Congressman To Call For Austin’s Resignation. “Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-17) is calling for Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to resign “due to lack of transparency,” becoming the first Democratic member of Congress to do so.” (PoliticsPA)

Griffin, Schwarzman Fuel McCormick Super PAC’s $18 Million Haul. “Citadel’s Ken Griffin, Blackstone’s Steve Schwarzman and Elliott Management’s Paul Singer are among the donors who collectively gave nearly $18 million to a super political action committee supporting David McCormick, a Republican running for US Senate in Pennsylvania, according to a person familiar with the group’s finances.” (Bloomberg)

Casey Raises $3.6 Million In Q4. “Fresh on the heels of his opponent’s fundraising announcement, Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) made news of his own, reporting that his re-election campaign raised more than $3.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.” (PoliticsPA)

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack Makes $26M Visit to PA Farm Show. “There’s a reason Tom Vilsack chose Pennsylvania to unveil a new funding program.” (Lancaster Farming)

Shapiro Touts Agriculture During Farm Show Visit As Key To PA Future. “Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration plans to roll out an economic development strategy in the coming weeks that is betting agriculture can aid the future prosperity of Pennsylvania.” (PennLive)

Democrat Ashley Ehasz Aims For Election Rematch, Announces Largest Fundraising Haul. “This week, Ehasz’s campaign announced a final quarter of 2023 fundraising haul of $248,768, her largest fundraising quarter yet. Ehasz said 86 percent of donations for the quarter were $100 or less.” (New Hope Free Press)

State

2. DLCC Unveils 2024 Roadmap in “The Year of the States”

“Calling it the most consequential year for state politics and state legislatures in history, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) unveiled its “2024 roadmap” that outlines its priorities, fundraising and targets for the coming election cycle.

The DLCC has Pennsylvania in the memo as one of its most important states. It hopes to protect the Democratic majority in the State House which currently stands at 101-101 with a special election coming next month. The committee also sees an opportunity to flip the Pennsylvania Senate that Republicans hold a 28-22 majority.” (PoliticsPA)

Related

Senator Gene Yaw To Run For Re-Election. “As a Republican Senator for the 23rd district, Yaw currently serves residents of Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan, Tioga and Union counties.” (CNHI News)

State Sen. Jim Brewster to Retire. “In an exclusive interview with KDKA political editor Jon Delano, Pennsylvania Sen. Jim Brewster says he will step down from public office at the end of his term this year after nearly three decades in public service.” (CBS Pittsburgh)

Pennsylvania Provides State Money For Public Defense For The First Time. “Pennsylvania will soon convene a committee to decide how to spend the state’s first-ever funding for public defense, though experts cautioned the investment won’t be enough to level the playing field.” (Spotlight PA)

General Services Announces Capitol East Wing Renovation Project Construction to Commence in July. “There are changes a-foot in Harrisburg. The Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) will launch a renovation project this spring in the East Wing of the State Capitol building to install a grand staircase to replace the existing escalators, install a large, ADA-compliant group elevator, make rotunda lighting improvements, and upgrade the cafeteria’s ceiling, lighting, and HVAC systems.” (PoliticsPA)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Philadelphia City Commissioners Ousted Their Chair As They Prepare To Run 2024 Election

“Philadelphia’s City Commissioners, the three elected officials who run elections in the city, started what is sure to be a year of intense scrutiny with new leadership after ousting Democrat Lisa Deeley as chair in a brief special meeting Wednesday morning.

Omar Sabir, also a Democrat took over as chair of the three-member board with backing from the lone Republican on the board, Commissioner Seth Bluestein.

Driving the change: tensions among top ranking staffers and a structure that had centralized power with Deeley’s office.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Related

In PA’s Fulton County, GOP Officials’ New Hail Mary Is A Call For A Congressional Probe. “Officials in a Pennsylvania county have escalated their response to voter fraud claims already dismissed in court.” (Waynesboro Record Herald)

Innamorato Pledges $500k To Alleviate Child Care ‘Crisis’. “Sara Innamorato laid out a new administration priority yesterday, allocating $500,000 to a pilot program for subsidizing child care in one of her first big moves since taking office.” (Public Source)

Allegheny County Controller To Audit County Spending On Homelessness Programs. “As the county spends millions a year to tackle homelessness, the crisis continues to grow — the unhoused population saw a nearly 25% jump last year alone.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Philly Nonprofit Execs Spent Millions On Golf, Art, Sixers Tickets, And Sketchy Contracts. No One Has Been Held Accountable. “After an internal probe questioned millions in spending at Community Council Health Systems in West Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania Attorney General made a deal with the board members.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• Whoever Wants To Lead This Nation Will Have To Battle It Out In Pennsylvania. (Joyce Davis)
• Will PA’s Lawmakers Be Better In 2024 Or The Mediocre Same? (John Baer)
• Donald Trump, Scott Perry, And The Real Threat To Democracy. (George Hofmann)
• America’s Largest Full-Time Legislature Should Not Be Its Least Productive. (Rep. Rob Mercuri)
• New Council Leadership Must Not Retreat From Holding Mayor Accountable. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Women Have Always Been Hidden Figures In The Civil Rights Movement. (Marsha Brown-Woodard)
• Every Abortion Story is Unique. (Teresa Rennie)
• PA House Democrats Oppose Parental Inclusivity. (Ruth Ann Dailey)
• Time For Pennsylvania To Speed Up The Transition To Clean Energy. (Flora Cardoni)

1 TV Thing

5. Looking Good For 75

Today is a big day at KDKA-TV as it celebrates its 75th anniversary of being on the air.

The first broadcast was on January 11, 1949 and was a live, one-hour program broadcast from the Syria Mosque in Oakland. KDKA-TV’s original call letters were WDTV and the station was part of the Dumont Television Network.

KDKA’s first broadcast is called the birth of network television, because when the station came on air, it linked TV stations from the East Coast to the Midwest.” (CBS Pittsburgh)

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