John Rafferty

John Rafferty
Pennsylvania State Senate District 44
Incumbent
In office
2003-Present
Term ends
November 30, 2014
Years in position	10
Party	Republican
Compensation
Base salary	$82,026/year
Per diem	$159/day
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 2, 2010
First elected	2002
Next election	November 4, 2014
Term limits	N/A
Education
Bachelor's	University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown, 1975
Master's	Beaver College, 1984
J.D.	Temple University School of Law, 1988
Personal
Place of birth	Montgomery County
Profession	Attorney
Religion	Roman Catholic
Websites
Office website

John Rafferty has been a Republican member of the Pennsylvania State Senate since 2003. Rafferty was re-elected in November of 2010 with his term expiring in 2014. Before becoming a Senator, Rafferty served on the Montgomery County Board of Assessment Appeals from 1996-2002 and served in the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office as Deputy Attorney General from 1988 to 1991. Rafferty later became a private practice attorney in 1991 and continues to work as an Attorney when the Senate is not in session.

Rafferty graduated with his Bachelor's in History from Pittsburgh-Johnstown in 1975 and his Master's Degree from Beaver College in 1984. Rafferty later earned his Juris Doctor degree from Temple Law in 1988.

Committee assignments

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Rafferty served on the following committees:

2011-2012

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Rafferty served on these committees:

2009-2010

In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Rafferty served on these committees:

Elections

2010

See also: Pennsylvania State Senate elections, 2010

Rafferty won re-election in District 44. He was unopposed in the May 18 Republican primary and defeated Democrat Matt Stehman in the November 2 general election.

Pennsylvania State Senate District 44
Candidates		Votes
John Rafferty (R)		56,388
Matt Stehman (D)		34,180

2006

On November 7, 2006, Rafferty was re-elected to Pennsylvania State Senate District 44.

Rafferty raised $381,996 for this campaign.

Pennsylvania State Senate District 44
Candidates		Votes
RAFFERTY, JOHN (R)		49,798
WEAND, DAN (D)		38,768

Campaign themes

Rafferty's campaign website lists six main issues:

• Reform Excerpt: "He wants to clean up the political process, reform the General Assembly and bring integrity to public service. He voted against the legislative, judicial and Governor's pay raises. He did not accept the pay raise and fought successfully for the repeal."

• Safeguarding Our Children Excerpt: " He is the sponsor of Jessica's Law, which would impose a mandatory minimum of 25-years and up to 50 years imprisonment for a first-time offender convicted of rape or involuntary deviate sexual intercourse involving a child less than 13 years of age."

• Property Tax Reform Excerpt: "John supports eliminating school property tax for homeowners. He believes that the burden of funding schools is becoming too great for homeowners and that it is time to replace the property tax with a more fair revenue source."

• Spending and Taxes Excerpt: "ohn believes government should function within its means and on a tight budget, just like individuals and families do everyday. That is why he voted against the increase in state income tax; voted against the nursing home bed tax; voted to remove the ‘double' cell phone tax; and voted for income tax credits for health savings accounts and tuition account programs."

• Gaming Excerpt: "He is taking a lead in the effort to reform the Gaming Board, close the loop holes for corruption and make sure the Pennsylvania State Police and Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office have proper oversight."

• Protecting Our Environment Excerpt: "John has worked with local and state environmental organizations, local and state government officials and businesses to fight the deadly pollutants contaminating our wells, streams and backyards. He pushed for the closure of the Pottstown Landfill and sponsored legislation to crack down on bad landfill operators."

Campaign donors

2010

In 2010, Rafferty received $341,531 in campaign donations. The top contributors are listed below.

Pennsylvania State Senate 2010 election - Campaign Contributions
Top contributors to John Rafferty's campaign in 2010
Pennsylvania Republican Party	$43,012
Southeast Republican Senate Victory Cmte	$10,000
Senate Republican Campaign Cmte Of Pennsylvania	$7,904
Caramanico, Thomas A	$7,500
Pennsylvania Future Fund	$7,500
Total Raised in 2010	$341,531

2006

Rafferty raised $381,996 during the 2006 election cycle.

His top contributors are listed below.

Donor	Amount
Republican Committee	$25,702
Pennsylvania Republican Party	$14,464
Pennsylvania Beer Wholesalers Association	$12,719
John Wolfington	$10,000
Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Society	$10,000
Todd Hendricks	$9,170
Pennsylvania State Troopers Association	$7,500
Metropolitan Regional Council of Carpenters and Joiners	$7,000
Charles Mandracchia	$6,737
Hospital and Health System Association of Pennsylvania	$6,170

District 44

Rafferty represents Pennsylvania Senate District 44. District 44 includes the outlying Western Philadelphia suburbs in Montgomery County.

Personal

Rafferty resides in Collegetown, Pennsylvania.

External links

Suggest a link

• Profile from the Pennsylvania Senate website
• Profile from Project Vote Smart
• Campaign Contributions: 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002
• Sen. Rafferty's website
• Campaign website

References

Political offices
Preceded by '	Pennsylvania State Senate District 44 2003–present	Succeeded by NA