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Pennsylvania Auditor election, 2016
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April 26, 2016 |
November 8, 2016 |
Eugene DePasquale (D) |
Eugene DePasquale (D) |
Attorney General Down Ballot Treasurer • Auditor |
February 16, 2016 |
April 26, 2016 |
August 1, 2016 |
November 8, 2016 |
November 17, 2016 |
January 17, 2017 |
Pennsylvania held an election for auditor on November 8, 2016. Incumbent Eugene DePasquale (D) won election to a second term.
Overview
The auditor general of Pennsylvania is tasked with ensuring state funds are being used properly and efficiently. He or she conducts financial and performance audits of individuals, state agencies, and organizations that receive state funds, including school districts, state liquor stores, and public pensions.
Incumbent Eugene DePasquale (D) ran election to a second term and was unopposed in the Democratic primary. He competed with Northampton County Executive John A. Brown (R), also unopposed in the Republican primary, Libertarian Roy Minet, and Green Party candidate Jay Sweeney in the November 8 general election. DePasquale won re-election by a margin of 5 percent.
Pennsylvania is often considered a swing state and had a divided government going into the 2016 elections: Democrats dominate the state's top executive offices while Republicans hold a majority in the state legislature.[1]
Candidates
Eugene DePasquale (D)
Auditor general of Pennsylvania since 2013
John A. Brown (R)
Northampton County executive since 2014
Jay Sweeney (Green)
Former chair of the state Green Party
Roy Minet (Lib.)
Businessman
Results
General election
Incumbent Eugene DePasquale defeated John A. Brown, John Sweeney, and Roy Minet in the Pennsylvania auditor election.
| Pennsylvania Auditor, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Eugene DePasquale Incumbent |
50.01% | 2,958,818 | |
| Republican | John A. Brown | 45.08% | 2,667,318 | |
| Green | John Sweeney | 2.69% | 158,942 | |
| Libertarian | Roy Minet | 2.23% | 131,853 | |
| Total Votes | 5,916,931 | |||
| Source: Pennsylvania Department of State | ||||
Primary results
Democratic primary election
| Pennsylvania Auditor Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Eugene DePasquale Incumbent (unopposed) |
100.00% | 1,307,226 | |
| Total Votes | 1,307,226 | |||
| Source: Pennsylvania Department of State | ||||
Republican primary election
| Pennsylvania Auditor Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | John A. Brown (Pennsylvania) (unopposed) |
100.00% | 1,203,209 | |
| Total Votes | 1,203,209 | |||
| Source: Pennsylvania Department of State | ||||
Context of the 2016 election
Primary elections
A primary election is an election in which voters select the candidate they believe should represent a political party in a general election. Primaries usually take place several months before a general election. Pennsylvania uses a closed primary process: in order to vote in a party's primary election, a voter must be a registered member of that party.[2][3][4]
Pennsylvania's primary election took place on April 26, 2016.
Incumbent Eugene DePasquale (D)
Eugene DePasquale (D) was first elected auditor in 2012, defeating Republican John Maher by a margin of three percent. The same year, DePasquale also ran for and won re-election to his seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives; he resigned to assume the position of auditor general. He had served in the House since 2007.
Prior to his tenure in the House, DePasquale worked as deputy secretary for the Department of Environmental Protection and as director of economic development for the City of York.
Party control in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania is usually regarded as a swing state, though the presidential nomination has gone to a Democrat since 1988.[1] It has a divided government. Republicans have controlled the General Assembly for much of the last 20 years; Governor Tom Wolf's election in 2014 ended a three-year Republican trifecta. However, as of January 2016 approval ratings for the state government were extremely low: 35 percent for Gov. Wolf and 15 percent for the Republican-controlled legislature.[5]
Democrats hold all of Pennsylvania's elected state executive offices. Since 1953, only three Republicans have occupied the auditor Ggneral's office, compared to eight Democrats.[6] Despite recent controversies surrounding Democratic state officials—namely the indictment of A.G. Kathleen Kane and conviction of former Treasurer Rob McCord on federal charges of extortion—DePasquale's incumbency advantage and the Republican-controlled legislature's low approval rating make this race an uphill battle for Republican challenger John A. Brown.[5]
Pennsylvania Party Control: 1992-2025
One year of a Democratic trifecta • Twelve years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| Senate | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | _ |
Campaigns
Endorsements
| Key endorsements | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eugene DePasquale[7] | John A. Brown[8] | ||||||||
| Pennsylvania Business Council PAC | Republican Party of Pennsylvania | ||||||||
| Transportation Construction Industry PAC | |||||||||
| Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants PAC | |||||||||
| What is a key endorsement? | |||||||||
Campaign finance
| Eugene DePasquale Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| Campaign Finance Report | January 1, 2016-March 7, 2016 | $149,386.01 | $67,765 | $(22,919.42) | $194,231.59 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $67,765 | $(22,919.42) | ||||||||
| John A. Brown Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| Campaign Finance Report | January 1, 2016-March 7, 2016 | $810.08 | $25,050 | $(12,952.57) | $12,907.51 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $25,050 | $(12,952.57) | ||||||||
Campaign media
Note: If a candidate is not listed below, Ballotpedia staff were unable to locate any campaign media for that candidate. Do you know of any? Tell us!
Democrats
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Republicans
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About the office
- See also: Pennsylvania Auditor General
The auditor general of Pennsylvania is tasked with ensuring state funds are being used properly and efficiently. He or she conducts financial and performance audits of individuals, state agencies, and organizations that receive state funds, including school districts, state liquor stores, and public pensions.
Audits are designed to measure how effectively government programs use public money to meet their stated goals and objectives. The office performs more than 6,000 audits each year and is responsible for auditing all federal funds that are allocated to the state.
Auditors general have often gone on to serve as state treasurer, the chief financial officer of Pennsylvania. These include U.S. Senator Bob Casey Jr. (D), who served as auditor from 1997 to 2005 and as treasurer from 2005 to 2007; and Barbara Hafer (R), who served as auditor from 1989 to 1997 and as treasurer from 1997 to 2005.[6]
Incumbent
The incumbent was Eugene DePasquale (D). He was elected in 2012 and sworn in on January 15, 2013.[9]
Vacancies
Article IV, Section 8 of the Pennsylvania Constitution grants the governor the power to appoint officers to fill vacancies. In the event of a vacancy in the office of auditor general, the governor nominates a successor. This nomination must be made to the commonwealth Senate within 90 days of the vacancy. The senate must then take action (confirming or not confirming the nomination) within 25 legislative days.[10]
Authority
Though the state constitution does not specifically create the office of auditor general, it does allow for the addition of public officers in Article IV, Section 1:
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All officers, whose selection is not provided for in this Constitution, shall be elected or appointed as may be directed by law.[11] |
Given this authority, the Pennsylvania General Assembly created the office of auditor general in 1809.[12]
Qualifications
There are no specific qualifications for the Pennsylvania auditor general.[12]
Elections
Initially, the auditor general was appointed by the governor, but in 1850 the position became an elected office. From 1850 to 1909, auditors general were elected to serve three-year terms. In 1909, the state legislature passed an amendment to the constitution which expanded the terms to four years.[12]
Past elections
To view the electoral history dating back to 2000 for the office of Pennsylvania Auditor General, click [show] to expand the section. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2012 Incumbent Jack Wagner (D) was prevented by term-limits from seeking re-election. Eugene DePasquale (D) defeated fellow state Rep. John Maher (R), along with third party candidate Betsy Summers, in the general election on November 6, 2012.[13]
On November 4, 2008, Jack Wagner won re-election to the office of Pennsylvania Auditor General. He defeated Chet Beiler (R) and Betsy Summers (L) in the general election.
2004 On November 2, 2004, Jack Wagner won election to the office of Pennsylvania Auditor General. He defeated Joe Peters (R) and three third-party candidates in the general election.
2000 On November 7, 2000, Bob Casey won re-election to the office of Pennsylvania Auditor General. He defeated Katie True (R) and four third-party candidates in the general election.
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See also
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Pennsylvania government: |
Previous elections: |
Ballotpedia exclusives: |
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Governing.com, "Will Swing States Increase in the 2016 Presidential Election?" December 9, 2015
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures Website, "State Primary Election Types," accessed January 6, 2014
- ↑ Fair Vote, "Congressional and Presidential Primaries: Open, Closed, Semi-Closed, and 'Top Two,'" accessed January 6, 2014
- ↑ Ballotpedia research conducted December 26, 2013, through January 3, 2014, researching and analyzing various state websites and codes.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 The Morning Call, "Voter disgust hits record high for PA government and politicians, poll finds," January 26, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Pennsylvania Manual, "Section 4," accessed March 31, 2016
- ↑ The Morning Call, "Democratic auditor general gets big business endorsements," February 26, 2016
- ↑ Republican Party of Pennsylvania, "PA GOP SUPPORTS RAFFERTY, BROWN AND VOIT FOR STATEWIDE ROW OFFICES," January 16, 2016
- ↑ Pennsylvania Department of the Auditor General, "Auditor General Eugene DePasquale," accessed November 18, 2013
- ↑ Pennsylvania State Legislature, "Executive branch," June 1, 2011
- ↑ [sites.state.pa.us/PA_Constitution.html Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, "Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania," accessed November 5, 2015]
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Pennsylvania Department of the Auditor General, "About the department," November 5, 2015
- ↑ Philadelphia Inquirer, "Election Results 2012," accessed November 7, 2012
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