Josh Shapiro Starts a New Chapter, Attacking the ‘Toxicity in D.C.’

Kicking off his re-election bid, the Pennsylvania governor warned against federal overreach and promised, “I will not let anyone mess with a Pennsylvanian.”

Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, widely seen as one of the Democratic Party’s strongest rising politicians and as a possible presidential contender, kicked off a high-stakes governor’s race on Thursday by announcing his re-election bid.

At a lively rally at a carpenters’ technical center in Pittsburgh, Mr. Shapiro reintroduced himself as a pragmatic politician focused on economic growth and affordability, public safety and education, declaring a record of getting “stuff done” (sometimes using a more colorful word than “stuff”).

But if he was primarily focused on telling a positive story about Pennsylvania — with plenty of flashes of bravado — he also took unsubtle jabs at the Trump administration, denouncing the “chaos and the toxicity in D.C.”

“The 10th Amendment of our Constitution preserves power to the states and guards against federal overreach,” he said pointedly, at a time when the Trump administration has sought to deploy the National Guard and federal officers to some states over the objections of sitting governors, and moved to freeze funding to several Democratic-led states.

He added, “Hear me when I say this: I will not let anyone mess with a Pennsylvanian.”

The long-expected re-election announcement represents the beginning of a significant new chapter for Mr. Shapiro, who is also releasing a memoir this month.

Mr. Shapiro, already a national Democratic figure after being a finalist in his party’s 2024 vice-presidential search, is often floated as a potential 2028 presidential candidate. He has gained a reputation for notching notable victories in perhaps the nation’s most crucial political battleground.

Republicans hope to take some of that sheen off Mr. Shapiro this year, even if they face an uphill battle to defeat him. His November performance — the outcome itself and the margin of victory should he win — will go a long way toward shaping national perceptions of his viability as a candidate for higher office.

On Thursday, of course, Mr. Shapiro largely kept his focus on Pennsylvania, making overtures to a broad range of constituencies, especially working-class voters. As in other places around the country, in Pennsylvania working-class voters have drifted away from the Democratic Party, helping President Trump win the state twice.

“Nearly 60 percent of our new hires don’t have a college degree, opening up the doors of opportunity to more Pennsylvanians who’d been shut out,” Mr. Shapiro said in his announcement video, nodding to efforts to expand state opportunities regardless of education level.

Mr. Shapiro, who was also expected to campaign in Philadelphia on Thursday, spoke before a Pittsburgh crowd teeming with local elected officials, union members and area Democratic activists. Some were from towns or counties in Western Pennsylvania that have shifted sharply away from Democrats in recent years.

He sought to walk a balance between talking up the state’s economic successes and acknowledging that “we know that the floor is too hard for others.”

“We need to protect the possibility of success while making life more affordable for those struggling to get by,” Mr. Shapiro said.

The reception was warm and the cheers were especially loud when he alluded to taking on the Trump administration — though in the heart of Steelers country, some briefly booed Mr. Shapiro’s Eagles fandom.

Mr. Shapiro nodded to the idea that some Americans, so overwhelmed by White House actions, are inclined to just tune out. Don’t do that, he warned.

“This type of chaos erodes the progress we’ve made here in Pennsylvania — and I know, I know it stokes worry, and for some, an impulse to just retreat,” he said.

“Now is not a time for any of us, though, to retreat,” he added, in a speech that also mentioned the opportunities for Democrats to flip key Pennsylvania congressional seats. “It’s a time to engage. A time to stand up to the bullies. A time to offer calm in the face of chaos.”

Mr. Shapiro starts the race with considerable advantages. This week, his campaign announced that he ended 2025 with more than $30 million in cash on hand, in what his team said was a state record. He has also repeatedly earned high approval ratings.

The question for Pennsylvania Republicans is whether they have found a candidate who can put up a serious challenge to Mr. Shapiro, scrutinize his record and raise the kind of money needed to compete vigorously statewide.

They certainly did not have that in 2022, when Mr. Shapiro won his first campaign for governor by nearly 15 percentage points over Doug Mastriano, a far-right opponent who spent the homestretch of the campaign in fasting and prayer.

Mr. Mastriano, now sporting a scruffy beard, teased at another run for governor on Wednesday during a Facebook livestream that included a nearly half-hour highlight video of his failed 2022 campaign. Eventually he declared alongside his wife “that God has not called us to run for governor this year.”

This year, the Republican Party of Pennsylvania is supporting Stacy Garrity, the state treasurer, for governor. Ms. Garrity is already bashing Mr. Shapiro as being overly focused on his national ambitions, while Pennsylvania Democrats are casting Ms. Garrity as too extreme for the state.

“Josh Shapiro is more concerned with a promotion to Pennsylvania Avenue than serving hardworking Pennsylvanians,” Ms. Garrity said in a statement, noting the economic and educational challenges the state faces with Mr. Shapiro in office. “Together we will return Pennsylvania to our rightful place as a national and global leader.”

While Mr. Shapiro did not mention Ms. Garrity in his speech, he swiped at “politicians who know better” but are “too cowardly to speak up” about what’s unfolding in Washington.

Early polling shows that Ms. Garrity faces a tall task in introducing herself. A Quinnipiac University poll last fall showed that 13 percent of Pennsylvanians surveyed had a favorable opinion of her, 12 percent had an unfavorable view and 73 percent said they hadn’t heard enough about her. In contrast, Mr. Shapiro’s favorability rating was at 58 percent.

Mr. Shapiro has been working to build out his national profile, going beyond what Americans know about him from then-Vice President Kamala Harris’s search for a running mate in 2024. Ultimately, she chose Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota.

Mr. Shapiro, who has an extensive donor network, will begin his book tour this month. Closer to home, he has already endorsed candidates in some Pennsylvania congressional races.

After enduring an arson attack on the governor’s residence over Passover last year, Mr. Shapiro, who is Jewish, has also been outspoken about the importance of confronting political violence.

After his remarks, Mr. Shapiro and his wife worked the rope line greeting attendees, including a woman named Ondrea Burton, who said she had worked in government and has started an organization helping young adults with developmental disabilities.

In an interview afterward, Ms. Burton said she had sent the governor a signed copy of a book about an Obama-era Passover Seder celebration called “Next Year in the White House,” and had wanted to confirm that he received it.

“I told him it was a premonition,” she said.

Nick Corasaniti contributed reporting.

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