Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro took his first official step into national politics this week by creating a federal political action committee called New Path PAC, a move that lets him raise money for and contribute directly to four Democratic congressional candidates ahead of the November midterms. The new committee arrives as Shapiro runs for reelection against Republican Stacy Garrity, with Pennsylvania's Election Day set for November 3.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, New Path PAC will allow Shapiro to fundraise and contribute directly to the four Democratic candidates he's supporting: Bob Harvie in Pennsylvania's 1st District, Bob Brooks in the 7th, Paige Cognetti in the 8th, and Janelle Stelson in the 10th. The newspaper described the committee as the strongest signal yet that Shapiro is eyeing a 2028 presidential run, even as his campaign insists his attention is elsewhere for now.
Shapiro's campaign told the Inquirer that the governor remains focused on those four Pennsylvania congressional races in the remaining days before the election. New Path PAC's executive director, Marshall Cohen, framed the effort around the midterms rather than Shapiro's own future, saying Pennsylvania voters have an opportunity to check Donald Trump and put the country on a new path. Cohen added that Shapiro is fighting to win up and down the ballot in Pennsylvania in November to elect leaders and deliver a congressional majority that will fight for working families.
A War Chest Built for State Races, Now Capped by Federal Rules
Shapiro's existing state-level PAC has amassed a whopping $60 million war chest since he took office in 2023, per the Inquirer's reporting. That money, however, can only fund Shapiro's own race and other state-office candidates — campaign finance laws restrict its spending to state races, leaving federal contests like the congressional seats off-limits.
The state PAC has already put nearly $38 million into television and streaming ads for Shapiro's reelection campaign, according to media tracker AdImpact, and it has contributed more than $5.6 million to the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. New Path PAC exists precisely to get around that firewall, giving Shapiro a federal vehicle to help down-ballot Democrats in ways his state committee legally cannot.
Polling Shows a Commanding Lead, But National Ambitions Are a Different Story
A Quinnipiac University poll released Oct. 7 found Shapiro leading Garrity 59% to 34% among likely Pennsylvania voters, a gap wide enough to make his reelection look like a formality. The Quinnipiac survey polled 1,159 likely voters from October 1 through October 5, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9 percentage points, and found 63% of respondents approved of Shapiro's job performance against 30% who disapproved. Fifty-five percent viewed him favorably, compared with 29% unfavorably.
Those numbers stand in sharp contrast to the national attention surrounding talk of Shapiro's potential ambitions, even as his new federal PAC could theoretically help him finance a White House run down the line.
Shapiro has also declined to commit fully to staying in Harrisburg. During a recent debate, he declined to pledge that he would serve another full four-year term as governor, a notable hedge for a candidate cruising to reelection by a wide margin.
Following a Pattern Set by Other Democratic Governors
Shapiro is not the first Democratic governor to build a federal fundraising vehicle with one eye on 2028. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear launched his own federal PAC in 2024, while Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker started one, the Inquirer reported. Pritzker's committee, known as Ready for the Fight, is chaired by the Illinois governor and plans to invest at least $20 million to boost Democratic House candidates, according to Politico, including spending aimed at Republican-held seats in Ohio and Texas.
Shapiro joins other Democratic governors, including Beshear and Pritzker, who have launched federal PACs. New Path PAC gives Shapiro a federal vehicle to support the four congressional candidates he is backing in Pennsylvania.
Why the Midterms Matter Beyond November
Pennsylvania voters currently favor Democratic control of the U.S. House over Republican control by 54% to 39%, according to the same Quinnipiac poll. That preference underscores what is at stake in the four congressional races Shapiro's new PAC is targeting, and why Democrats nationally are watching Pennsylvania closely as a bellwether.
Shapiro is also working to help elect other candidates. For now, both Shapiro and his campaign maintain that the governor's focus is squarely on Nov. 3 — not 2028.
