October 19, 2022
In his campaign to be Pennsylvania governor, Doug Mastriano has positioned himself as a champion of individual freedoms and a defender of election integrity – regardless of whether any of his perceived threats to the state's elections have any basis in reality.
The 58-year-old Republican, who is the state senator representing the 33rd District, received national attention for refusing to accept the results of the 2020 presidential election. He has alleged widespread voter fraud, perpetuating the baseless claim made by former President Donald Trump.
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Such stroking of Trump's ego and endeared him to the former president, who delivered a last minute endorsement of Mastriano, helping propel him to victory in May's crowded Republican primary. Mastriano has stayed on message since, vowing to eliminate "no excuse" mail voting, get rid of ballot drop boxes, and implement mandatory voter ID laws.
Mastriano's opponent in the Pennsylvania gubernatorial races is Democrat Josh Shapiro, the state's attorney general.
Mastriano met with the House Jan. 6 committee in August after being subpoenaed to discuss an alleged plan to send pro-Trump electors from Pennsylvania to Congress, his conversations with Trump and his presence at the Capitol on the day of the insurrection. The meeting via Zoom lasted 15 minutes and Mastriano did not answer any questions. He later sued the committee, alleging that the group cannot compel people to sit for depositions.
As a politician, he first gained attention outside of his district – which represents portions of Adams, Franklin, Cumberland and York counties – for his criticisms of Gov. Tom Wolf's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the public safety restrictions and vaccine mandates. He has said he would put an end to all COVID-19 restrictions in Pennsylvania, revoke pandemic emergency orders, and expand access to alternative treatments in an effort to "restore freedom" across the state.
Mastriano wants to make Pennsylvania a constitutional carry state, which would allow people to carry handguns and other weapons in public without permits.
In 2019, Mastriano introduced his "heartbeat bill" to the legislature. The bill would ban abortion at six weeks gestation, and Mastriano has pledged to sign the bill into law as governor. During an interview with WITF that year, Mastriano said he believes women and abortion providers should be charged with murder for violating his proposed abortion ban. Soundbites from the interview have been frequently utilized in opposition ads.
To curb violent crime, he has pledged to remove elected officials who don't meet his standards of prosecuting defendants. He also has said he would ensure law enforcement has adequate funding, and would add more prosecutors in high-crime areas.
Mastriano is in favor of school choice and sponsored legislation that's been dubbed a "parental bill of rights," which he and supporters believe would prevent state and local governments and school districts from infringing on the the rights of parents to oversee the upbringing, education and health care of their children.
Each of Pennsylvania's Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives have endorsed Mastriano, except of Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, the congressman for the 1st District, which covers all of Bucks County and small portions of Montgomery County.
In August, a photo surfaced of Mastriano wearing a Confederate Army uniform when he was a professor in the U.S. Army War College. Nearly 60 veterans signed a letter released by Shapiro's campaign, calling the photo "shameful."
Mastriano spent 30 years in active-duty service in the U.S. Army, rising to the rank of colonel, before retiring in 2017. He was deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Europe. Originally from New Jersey, he graduated with a bachelor's degree from Eastern University in Delaware County. Mastriano also has four master's degrees in military-related fields and a doctorate in history from Rutgers University.
More information about Mastriano's plan for Pennsylvania is available on his campaign website.
