Thomas Westerman Wolf (born November 17, 1948) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 47th
governor of Pennsylvania
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
since 2015. A member of the
Democratic Party, he defeated
Republican incumbent
Tom Corbett in the
2014 gubernatorial election and was reelected in
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
by a margin of 17.1%. Before his election as governor, Wolf was the secretary of the
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue from April 2007 to November 2008 and an executive in his family-owned business.
Early life and education
Wolf was born and raised in
Mount Wolf, Pennsylvania
Mount Wolf is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,367 at the 2020 census.
Geography
Mount Wolf is located at (40.062794, -76.705587).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a to ...
, the son of Cornelia Rohlman (née Westerman) (1923–2018) and William Trout Wolf (1921–2016), a business executive. His hometown was named after his ancestor, who was the town's postmaster.
He was raised
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
but is now affiliated with the
Episcopal Church.
Wolf graduated from
The Hill School, a boarding school in
Pottstown, Pennsylvania, in 1967. He went on to receive a
B.A. in government, ''
magna cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...
'', from
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...
in 1972, an
M.Phil.
The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil ...
from the
University of London
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...
in 1978, and a
Ph.D. in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...
[ from the ]Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of th ...
in 1981. While a student at Dartmouth, Wolf joined the Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John ...
and spent two years in India.
After earning his Ph.D., his dissertation on the United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
was named the best of 1981 by the American Political Science Association
The American Political Science Association (APSA) is a professional association of political science students and scholars in the United States. Founded in 1903 in the Tilton Memorial Library (now Tilton Hall) of Tulane University in New Orle ...
.[ Wolf turned down an opportunity to interview for a tenure-track faculty position at ]Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...
to begin his career at The Wolf Organization as manager of a True Value store owned by the company.
He met his wife, Frances, at school and married her in 1975. They have two adult daughters.
Business and early political career
Wolf purchased The Wolf Organization in 1985 with two partners. During the administration of Governor Robert P. Casey, Wolf served on an economic development board and on the Pennsylvania Legislative Commission on Urban Schools.[
After selling his company to a private equity firm in 2006, Wolf was nominated by then-governor Ed Rendell in January 2007 to be the secretary of revenue of Pennsylvania. He served in that position in Rendell's cabinet from his April 2007 confirmation by the ]Pennsylvania State Senate
The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg
Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealt ...
until he resigned in November 2008.[ He had planned to run for governor of Pennsylvania in the 2010 election, but ultimately did not in order to repurchase the Wolf Organization, which was facing bankruptcy.] Wolf continued to serve as an executive in The Wolf Organization until his election as governor. He served as chairman and chief executive officer until stepping down from the latter position in December 2013 to focus on his gubernatorial campaign and from the board altogether in December 2014 after his election.
Wolf chairs the York County United Way, the York County Community Foundation, the York College board of trustees, and the York County Chamber of Commerce. He has also been active in the York Jewish Community Center, the Memorial Hospital of York, and a regional public television system.
Governor of Pennsylvania
2014 election
On April 2, 2013, Wolf announced his candidacy for governor of Pennsylvania in the 2014 election. He pledged $10 million of his own money toward the primary election, with an intent to raise at least $5 million from supporters. He was the third person to announce candidacy, after John Hanger of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and Max Meyers, a minister from Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to:
Australia
* Cumberland County, New South Wales
* the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia
Canada
*Cumberland County, Nova Scotia
United Kingdom
*Cumberland, historic county
*Cumberla ...
, but at least four others were expected to join the race.
By March 2014, several polls suggested Wolf was the front-runner in the race for the Democratic nomination after an extensive television campaign. A February 2014 Franklin & Marshall College
Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It employs 175 full-time faculty members and has a student body of approximately 2,400 full-time students. It was founded upon the merger of Frank ...
poll showed him with a 27-point lead over his nearest competitor, Allyson Schwartz
Allyson Schwartz (née Young; born October 3, 1948) is an American Democratic Party politician who represented parts of Montgomery County and Northeast Philadelphia in the United States House of Representatives from 2005 to 2015 and Northeast and ...
, and a Harper poll showed him leading Schwartz by 26 points, as did a late March 2014 Franklin & Marshall poll.
In late April and early May, Wolf faced attacks from fellow candidate Rob McCord
Robert Maxwell McCord (born March 5, 1959) is an American former politician and convicted felon. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the Treasurer of Pennsylvania from 2009 to 2015. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic n ...
over his association with controversial former York, Pennsylvania, mayor Charlie Robertson
Charles Culbertson Robertson (January 31, 1896 – August 23, 1984) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a pitcher, and is best remembered for throwing a perfect game in 1922. He was the last surv ...
. Schwartz accused Wolf's campaign of plagiarizing his "Fresh Start" plan from an energy equipment company. Despite the attacks, a Muhlenberg College/'' Morning Call'' poll suggested Wolf continued to lead with 38% to Schwartz's 13% and McCord's 11%.
In the May 20 primary, Wolf defeated Schwartz, McCord, and Katie McGinty to win the Democratic nomination. He faced incumbent Republican Governor Tom Corbett in the November general election. Heading into the final two months of the campaign, a number of polls indicated a varying but consistent advantage for Wolf over Corbett. Although Corbett slightly narrowed the deficit as the election approached, Wolf maintained a lead in the race. On November 4, Wolf was elected governor with 54.9% of the vote. His victory was notable for engaging traditionally Republican areas of the state. Insiders have attributed this phenomenon to Regional Field Director Brendan Murray and his extensive relationship network in north-central Pennsylvania. Wolf is the first challenger to oust a sitting governor of Pennsylvania since the state's governors became eligible for immediate reelection in 1968.
First term
Wolf took office as Pennsylvania's 47th governor upon the expiration of Corbett's term on January 20, 2015, with the inaugural ceremony occurring in front of the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg
Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...
. Upon taking office, he opted not to move into the Pennsylvania Governor's Residence
The Pennsylvania Governor's Residence is the official residence of the governor of Pennsylvania, in the Uptown neighborhood of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The neo-Georgian residence was built from 1966 to 1968 and designed by George M. Ewing, hea ...
but instead commute from his home in York. A spokesman for Wolf said the residence would still be used for official events and other functions. Shortly after being sworn in, Wolf signed two executive orders banning gifts to state employees and requiring a bidding process for outside legal contracts. Wolf also restored a ban on hydraulic fracturing
Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "fra ...
, or "fracking", in state parks and placed a moratorium on the death penalty in Pennsylvania. The most significant executive action in his first days in office was his move to fully expand Medicaid
Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with healthcare costs for some people with limited income and resources. Medicaid also offers benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and per ...
under the Affordable Care Act
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Pres ...
.
Wolf proposed his first budget in March 2015, which included an increase in education spending, reductions in property tax
A property tax or millage rate is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or net wealth, taxes on the change of ownership of property through inher ...
es and the corporate tax
A corporate tax, also called corporation tax or company tax, is a direct tax imposed on the income or capital of corporations or analogous legal entities. Many countries impose such taxes at the national level, and a similar tax may be imposed a ...
, and a new severance tax on natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbon d ...
. Six months into his tenure, in July 2015, the websites OnTheIssues and InsideGov named Wolf the most liberal incumbent governor in the nation, based on a rating of public statements and press releases among other measures; Wolf rejected this assessment, arguing that his policies were directed by practicality rather than ideology.
On July 1, 2015, Wolf vetoed a budget the Pennsylvania General Assembly
The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania ...
submitted to him, causing a budget dispute between the governor's office and the legislature. This marked the first time a Pennsylvania governor vetoed a budget bill in its entirety since Milton Shapp
Milton Jerrold Shapp (born Milton Jerrold Shapiro; June 25, 1912 – November 24, 1994) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 40th governor of Pennsylvania from 1971 to 1979 and the first Jewish governor of Pennsylvania. H ...
did so in 1976. Wolf argued the budget was not balanced, disputing Republicans' claim that it would provide increased funding in certain areas without raising taxes. A point of dispute in the budget process was the proposed privatization of Pennsylvania's wine and liquor sales, which Wolf opposed. The state operated without a full budget for 267 days—the longest period without a full budget in Pennsylvania history—until the 2015–16 budget became law without Wolf's signature in March 2016.
In January 2016, at Elizabethtown College
Elizabethtown College (informally E-town) is a private college in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania.
History
Founding and early years
Founded in 1899, Elizabethtown College is one of many higher learning institutions founded in the 19th century by c ...
, Wolf announced the launch of the "It's On Us PA" campaign, which aims to expand awareness of sexual assault
Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...
in schools and on college campuses. Pennsylvania was the first state to implement a statewide campaign that called for a collaboration of schools, law enforcement, victim services organizations, and other community members to promote awareness, education, and bystander intervention of sexual violence specifically on school campuses. Several schools, including Franklin and Marshall College
Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It employs 175 full-time faculty members and has a student body of approximately 2,400 full-time students. It was founded upon the merger of Frankli ...
and Butler County Community College
Butler County Community College (BC3) is a public community college in Butler Township, Pennsylvania. It also offers courses in Cranberry Township, as well as in Lawrence, Mercer, and Jefferson counties. More recently the college has begun ...
, and Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) is a state agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that oversees 10 state-owned universities. Collectively, it is the largest provider of higher education in the commonwealth. All ...
Chancellor Frank Brogan
Frank T. Brogan (born September 6, 1953) is the former Assistant Secretary of Education (Elementary and Secondary Education). He succeeded Deborah S. Delisle.
He is the former Chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, fo ...
signed on to the initiative. On November 30, 2016, Wolf announced the awarding of "It's On Us PA" grants of $1 million to 36 post-secondary schools in the state to combat sexual violence on their campuses. Programs considered for funding included but were not limited to those that enhanced awareness of available resources as well as the rights of students and, most importantly, to increase mechanisms for anonymous reporting.
Wolf has expressed his opposition to targeting countries with economic sanctions or boycotts, saying, "We ... will not encourage economic punishment in place of peaceful solutions to challenging conflicts" (he later singled out Russia as an exception to this policy and immediately declared his support for sanctions and divestment from Russia after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine during his second term).
Wolf signed into law bills that legalized medical marijuana in Pennsylvania, reformed pensions, and expanded the number of offenses former criminal defendants could get sealed, among other legislation.
On February 24, 2016, Wolf announced that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Because it was diagnosed early, he said it would not hinder his ability to work. After treatment, Wolf's spokesperson announced in January 2017 that Wolf's physician had given him a "clean bill of health".
Wolf declared Pennsylvania's heroin and opioid addiction crisis a statewide emergency in January 2018. Pennsylvania became the eighth state to do so. Such a declaration lets Pennsylvania officials "override any current rules or regulations they perceive as hampering the state's ability to address the opioid epidemic".
2018 election
Wolf ran for reelection in 2018 and was unopposed in the Democratic primary. He defeated Republican State Senator Scott Wagner
Scott R. Wagner (born September 21, 1955) is an American businessman and politician from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He represented the 28th district in the Pennsylvania State Senate. He was the Republican nominee for Governor of Pennsylv ...
in the November 8 general election with about 57% of the vote. He is the first Pennsylvania governor to win election twice while losing both times in his home county (since 1968, when a new state constitution permitted governors to run for consecutive terms).
Second term
In 2019, Wolf signed reforms into law that would allow no-excuse mail-in ballot voting.
On June 23, 2020, State Representative Daryl Metcalfe
Daryl D. Metcalfe (born November 9, 1962) is an American politician currently serving in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Metcalfe is a member of the Republican Party and has represented the 12th legislative district since 1999.
Back ...
and 24 co-sponsors introduced five articles of impeachment in House Resolution 915 against Wolf based on charges that he damaged Pennsylvania's economy and exceeded his authority by unilaterally and unlawfully imposing his mitigation orders amid the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee but moved no further. On September 14, 2020, District Court Judge William S. Stickman IV
William Shaw Stickman IV (born 1979) is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Education
Stickman earned his Bachelor of Arts, ''summa cum laude'', in 2002 and his Juris D ...
ruled that the restrictions Wolf imposed during the pandemic were unconstitutional, violating the right to freedom of assembly guaranteed by the First Amendment
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...
. State officials asked Stickman to delay his ruling by while they appealed, but he declined. The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit later stayed the decision, allowing the restrictions to resume.
In September and October 2020, Wolf held a series of press conferences making the case for legalizing recreational cannabis in Pennsylvania, arguing that the reform was particularly needed in light of the economic downturn caused by COVID-19 and the prospect of losing revenue to New Jersey, which had recently legalized cannabis. Wolf first came out for legalization in 2019 after a statewide listening tour by Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman showed broad support for legalization.
Republican lawmakers brought two questions limiting Wolf's gubernatorial powers to a statewide vote on May 18, 2021, limiting disaster declarations from 90 to 21 days, transferring power to extend emergency orders from the governor to the state legislature
A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system.
Two federations literally use the term "state legislature":
* The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...
and permitting a simple majority of the legislature to terminate such a declaration at any time. Both passed, with publications declaring the measures victorious with 52% of the vote on May 19, making Pennsylvania the first state to approve a curb on a governor's emergency powers since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Electoral history
References
External links
Governor Tom Wolf
official government website
Tom Wolf for Governor
campaign website
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolf, Tom
1948 births
20th-century American businesspeople
21st-century American businesspeople
21st-century American politicians
Alumni of the University of London
American Episcopalians
Businesspeople from Pennsylvania
Dartmouth College alumni
Democratic Party governors of Pennsylvania
Former Methodists
Living people
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences alumni
Peace Corps volunteers
People from York County, Pennsylvania
State cabinet secretaries of Pennsylvania
The Hill School alumni