Hitting on an issue that has put Democrats on the defensive four weeks before the midterm elections, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro is leaning into his law enforcement record — and his platform calling for more police officers on the streets — in a new advertisement that will launch statewide on Wednesday.
The ad features the narration of several current and former law enforcement officials who say Pennsylvanians can always count on Mr. Shapiro to keep them safe. He is running against Republican state Sen. Doug Mastriano in the Nov. 8 election.
The advertisement touts Mr. Shapiro’s record as attorney general and his office’s seizing of millions of doses of heroin and fentanyl over the years and its prosecution of thousands of drug dealers under his watch.
At one point in the ad, the narrator reads, “He’ll hire more cops,” which is a reference to the Democrat’s calls for greater incentives so new officers join local forces. As evidence, the Shapiro camp points to reporting by Altoona television station WTAJ in February that cited him pitching the idea of $6,000 sign-up bonuses for new officers who join forces that are in need and $1,200 payments to first responders and 911 operators to retain emergency personnel.
The new ad comes as Republicans hit Democratic candidates across the country for being soft on crime, reminiscent of the GOP’s national party platform in 2020 when it linked mantras like “Defund the Police” to the party’s nominees.
Mr. Mastriano routinely links the rising crime rates in Pennsylvania to Mr. Shapiro’s tenure as attorney general, and in a recent stop in Bucks County, said it’s “disqualifying” that he has been the senior law enforcement officer in the state while crime has risen, according to the Delaware Valley Journal.
The Shapiro camp appears eager to hit back, and in the ad that includes narration from Erie County Sheriff Chris Campanelli and Delaware County Sheriff Jerry Sanders, it notes that the Democrat has been “endorsed by prosecutors from both parties.”
Mr. Shapiro’s team cites the backing of independent Franklin County District Attorney Matt Fogal and former Bucks County District Attorney David Heckler, a Republican, as well as the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association. The group, representing more than 4,400 state police officers in the state, endorsed Mr. Shapiro late last month alongside Republican Mehmet Oz in the U.S. Senate race.
“Attorney General Josh Shapiro has shown his support time and time again for the men and women of the Pennsylvania State Police during his tenure as the state’s attorney general,” the association’s president, David Kennedy, said in its endorsement announcement.
The ad concludes, “Josh Shapiro is the one we trust to keep us safe.”
According to a plan on Mr. Mastriano’s website, the Republican will make sure law enforcement has “adequate funding” if elected, and will “support funding for additional prosecutors in high-crime areas.”
First Published: October 12, 2022, 10:00 a.m.
Updated: October 12, 2022, 10:04 a.m.