The

Pennsylvania attorney general The Pennsylvania attorney general is the chief law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It became an elected office in 1980. The current attorney general is Republican Dave Sunday (politician), Dave ...

election of 2016 took place on November 8, 2016, to elect a new

. Democratic incumbent

Kathleen Kane Kathleen Margaret Kane (née Granahan) (born June 14, 1966) is an American former politician and lawyer who served as the attorney general of Pennsylvania from 2013 until her resignation in 2016, following her conviction for perjury, obstruction ...

originally indicated her intention to seek re-election, but dropped out after she was criminally charged with violating grand jury secrecy laws stemming from alleged leaks of grand jury investigation details to embarrass a political enemy. Democratic nominee and Montgomery County commissioner Josh Shapiro defeated Republican state senator John Rafferty Jr. by a margin of 2.78%.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

* John Morganelli, Northampton County district attorney, candidate for Attorney General in

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

and

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

and nominee in

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

Josh Shapiro Joshua David Shapiro (born June 20, 1973) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the 48th governor of Pennsylvania since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he was the attorney general of Pen ...

, chairman of the

Montgomery County Montgomery County may refer to: Australia * The former name of Montgomery Land District, Tasmania United Kingdom * The historic county of Montgomeryshire, Wales, also called County of Montgomery United States * Montgomery County, Alabama * Montg ...

Board of Supervisors and former state representative (2005–2012) * Stephen Zappala,

Allegheny County Allegheny County ( ) is a county in Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,250,578, making it the state's second-most populous county, after Philadelphia County. Its county seat and most populous city is Pit ...

district attorney

Withdrawn

* David Fawcett, former

councilman *

, incumbent attorney general * Jack Stollsteimer, former Delaware County assistant district attorney and former assistant United States attorney

Endorsements

Polling

Results

2016 Pennsylvania Attorney General Democratic primary

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

* Joe Peters, former federal and state prosecutor and nominee for

Pennsylvania Auditor General The Pennsylvania auditor general is the chief fiscal officer of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It became an elected office in 1850. The current auditor general of Pennsylvania is Republican Timothy DeFoor. History The office of the audito ...

* John Rafferty, state senator

Withdrawn

Todd Stephens Todd Stephens is an American film director, writer, and producer. He was raised in Sandusky, Ohio, which has served as the setting for several of his films, many of which are gay-themed. He both wrote and produced the autobiographical coming o ...

, state representative

Declined

*Heather Heidelbaugh, former

councilwoman

Results

General election

Predictions

Results

Notes

References

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

Pennsylvania Attorney General elections

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Josh Shapiro

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

Withdrawn

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

Withdrawn

Declined

Results

General election

Predictions

Results

Notes

References

External links