The 2018 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, concurrently with the election of Pennsylvania's Class I U.S. Senate seat, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various local elections. Incumbent Governor Tom Wolf won a second term by a double-digit margin, defeating Republican challenger Scott Wagner and two third-party candidates, Paul Glover from the Green Party, and Ken Krawchuk from the Libertarian Party. The primary elections were held on May 15. This was the only Democratic-held governorship up for election in a state that Donald Trump won in the 2016 presidential election.
Wagner won eight counties that Wolf won in 2014: Lawrence, Greene, Fayette, Cambria, Clinton, Northumberland, Carbon, and Schuylkill. Meanwhile, this was the first time since Bob Casey Jr.'s landslide state treasurer win in 2004 that Cumberland County voted for the Democrat in a statewide election.
Democratic primary
Governor
Candidate
- Tom Wolf, incumbent governor
Lieutenant governor
Incumbent Lieutenant Governor Mike Stack faced several controversies during his term, including mistreatment of state police officers assigned as his security detail. As a result, he faced several challengers in the primary, including 2016 Senate candidate John Fetterman. Stack was ultimately defeated by Fetterman, placing fourth overall.
Candidates
- John Fetterman, mayor of Braddock and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2016
Eliminated in the primary
- Nina Ahmad, former deputy mayor of Philadelphia
- Kathi Cozzone, Chester County commissioner
- Ray Sosa, banker and insurance broker
- Mike Stack, incumbent lieutenant governor
- Aryanna Berringer, Iraq War veteran and nominee for PA-16 in 2012 (endorsed Kathi Cozzone)
- Madeleine Dean, state representative (ran for PA-04)
- Craig Lehman, Lancaster County commissioner (endorsed Kathi Cozzone)
- Erin McClelland, nominee for PA-12 in 2014 and 2016 (endorsed Fetterman)
Endorsements
Madeleine Dean (withdrawn)
Federal officials
- Allyson Schwartz, U.S. representative from Pennsylvania's 13th congressional district (2005–2015)
State legislators
- Matthew Bradford, state representative from the 70th district (2009–present)
- Tim Briggs, state representative from the 149th district (2009–present)
- Mary Jo Daley, state representative from the 148th district (2013–present)
- Frank Dermody, state representative from the 33rd district (1991–2020), Pennsylvania House Democratic leader (2011–2020)
- Dan Frankel, state representative from the 23rd district (1999–present)
- Joseph Markosek, state representative from the 25th district (1983–2018)
John Fetterman
Mike Stack
Federal officials
- Bob Brady, U.S. representative from Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district (1998–2019)
State legislators
- Lisa Boscola, state senator from the 18th district (1999–present)
- Jim Brewster, state senator from the 45th district (2010–present)
- Jay Costa, state senator from the 43rd district (1996–present), Pennsylvania Senate minority leader (2011–present)
- Andy Dinniman, state senator from the 19th district (2006–2020)
- Larry Farnese, state senator from the 1st district (2009–2020)
- Wayne Fontana, state senator from the 42nd district (2005–present)
- Vincent Hughes, state senator from the 7th district (1994–present)
- Rich Kasunic, state senator from the 32nd district (1995–2015)
- Shirley Kitchen, state senator from the 3rd district (1996–2016)
- Daylin Leach, state senator from the 17th district (2009–2020)
- Judy Schwank, state senator from the 11th district (2011–present)
- Christine Tartaglione, state senator from the 2nd district (1995–present)
- Anthony Williams, state senator from the 8th congressional district (1999–present)
- John Yudichak, state senator from the 14th district (2011–2022)
Municipal officials
- Bobby Henon, Philadelphia City Council member from the 6th district (2012–2022)
- Jonathan Saidel, Philadelphia city controller (1990–2006)
Declined to endorse
Republican primary
Governor
Candidates
- Scott Wagner, state senator
Eliminated in the primary
- Laura Ellsworth, attorney
- Paul Mango, businessman and former U.S. Army officer
- Mike Turzai, speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and nominee for PA-04 in 1998
- Paul Addis, businessman (ran for U.S. Senate)
- Lou Barletta, U.S. representative (ran for U.S. Senate)
- Jake Corman, majority leader of the Pennsylvania State Senate
- Mike Kelly, U.S. representative
- Dave Reed, majority leader of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Endorsements
Scott Wagner
Federal officials
- Mike Pence, 48th vice president of the United States (2017–2021)
- Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States (2017–2021)
Governors
- Larry Hogan, 62nd governor of Maryland (2015–2023)
U.S. representatives
- Scott Perry, U.S. representative from Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district (2013–2019)
State senators
- Camera Bartolotta, state senator from the 46th district (2015–present)
- Mike Regan, state senator from the 31st district (2017–present)
- Guy Reschenthaler, state senator from the 37th district (2015–2019)
- Pat Stefano, state senator from the 32nd district (2015–present)
- Donald C. White, state senator from the 41st district (2001–2019)
State representatives
- Keith J. Gillespie, state representative from the 47th district (2003–present)
- Seth Grove, state representative from the 196th district (2009–present)
- Dawn Keefer, state representative from the 92nd district (2017–present)
- Kate Klunk, state representative from the 169th district (2015–present)
- Kristin Phillips-Hill, state representative from the 93rd district (2015–2019)
- Stan Saylor, state representative from the 94th district (1993–2022)
Individuals
- Diamond and Silk, social media personalities and political activists
Organizations
- Associated Builders and Contractors
- Luzerne County GOP
- Pennsylvania GOP
Lieutenant governor
Candidates
- Jeff Bartos, businessman (running with Scott Wagner)
Eliminated in the primary
- Kathy Coder, political activist
- Peg Luksik, political activist
- Diana Irey Vaughan, Washington County commissioner (running with Paul Mango)
- Joe Gale, Montgomery County commissioner (did not meet minimum age requirement of 30)
- Gordon Denlinger, former state representative
- Otto Voit, candidate for state treasurer in 2016
- Dave Argall, state senator and nominee for PA-17 in 2010
- Erin Elmore, attorney, political correspondent and The Apprentice contestant
- Dan Meuser, former Pennsylvania secretary of revenue and candidate for PA-10 in 2008 (running for PA-09)
- Justin Simmons, state representative (running for PA-15)
Endorsements
Jeff Bartos
Green Party
Governor
Candidates
- Paul Glover, community organizer
Lieutenant governor
Candidates
Libertarian Party
Governor
Candidates
- Ken Krawchuk, technology consultant and nominee for governor in 1998, 2002, and 2014
Lieutenant governor
Nominated
- Kathleen Smith, entrepreneur (running with Ken Krawchuk)
General election
Candidates
- Paul Glover (G), author, community organizer
- Ken Krawchuk (L), IT entrepreneur, freelance writer
- Scott Wagner (R), former state senator
- Tom Wolf (D), incumbent governor
Debates
- October 1, 2018: Complete video of debate (begins at 08:50)
Endorsements
Scott Wagner (R)
Federal officials
- Mike Pence, 48th vice president of the United States (2017–2021)
- Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States (2017–2021)
Governors
- Larry Hogan, 62nd governor of Maryland (2015–2023)
U.S. representatives
- Scott Perry, U.S. representative from Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district (2013–2019)
State senators
- Camera Bartolotta, state senator from the 46th district (2015–present)
- Mike Regan, state senator from the 31st district (2017–present)
- Guy Reschenthaler, state senator from the 37th district (2015–2019)
- Pat Stefano, state senator from the 32nd district (2015–present)
- Donald C. White, state senator from the 41st district (2001–2019)
State representatives
- Keith J. Gillespie, state representative from the 47th district (2003–present)
- Seth Grove, state representative from the 196th district (2009–present)
- Dawn Keefer, state representative from the 92nd district (2017–present)
- Kate Klunk, state representative from the 169th district (2015–present)
- Kristin Phillips-Hill, state representative from the 93rd district (2015–2019)
- Stan Saylor, state representative from the 94th district (1993–2022)
County Commissioners
- Chris Reilly, York County commissioner (1996–2020)
Individuals
- Diamond and Silk, social media personalities and political activists
Organizations
- Associated Builders and Contractors
- Luzerne County GOP
- Pennsylvania GOP
Tom Wolf (D)
Federal officials
- Joe Biden, 47th vice president of the United States (2009–2017)
- Eric Holder, 82nd United States attorney general (2009–2015)
- Barack Obama, 44th president of the United States (2009–2017)
Governors
- Ricardo Rosselló, governor of Puerto Rico (2017–2019)
U.S. representatives
- Dwight Evans, U.S. representative from Pennsylvania's 2nd congressional district (2016–2019)
State representatives
- Madeleine Dean, state representative from the 153rd district (2012–2018)
- Brian Joseph Kirkland, state representative from the 159th district (2017–2022)
- Leanne Krueger, state representative from the 161st district (2015–present)
Individuals
- Laura Gómez, actress
- Kevin Hart, actor and comedian
- Meek Mill, rapper
- Tom Perez, chair of the DNC (2017–2021)
- Zachary Quinto, actor and film producer
- Michael G. Rubin, businessman
- Mary Gay Scanlon, former member of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board
- Wanda Sykes, actress
Organizations
- Democratic Governors Association
- Human Rights Campaign
- Pennsylvania Democratic Party
- Planned Parenthood
Polling
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Results
The election was not close, with Wolf defeating Wagner by about 17 percentage points. Wolf won by running up large margins in Allegheny County, including Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia County, including Philadelphia. Wolf's victory can also be attributed to his strong performance in Philadelphia suburbs.
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Cambria (largest municipality: Johnstown)
- Carbon (largest municipality: Lehighton)
- Clinton (largest city: Lock Haven)
- Fayette (largest borough: Uniontown)
- Greene (largest municipality: Waynesburg)
- Lawrence (largest municipality: New Castle)
- Northumberland (largest borough: Sunbury)
- Schuylkill (largest city: Pottsville)
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
- Cumberland (largest municipality: Carlisle)
By congressional district
Wolf won 12 of 18 congressional districts, including three that elected Republicans.