HARRISBURG (AP) — Gov. Tom Wolf will wrap up eight years in office next month, having steered Pennsylvania through unpredictable times with the pandemic. The 74-year-old Wolf leaves office with solid polling numbers and his endorsed successor, Attorney General Josh Shapiro. Unemployment was at an all-time low in November, the treasury is stuffed with cash and Wolf points to a lasting legacy of dedicating billions more dollars to public schools. Wolf also saw many of his priorities pushed aside by lawmakers and racked up the most vetoes by any governor since Democrat Milton Shapp in the 1970s. Wolf used executive powers in ways never seen before during the pandemic, and drew a rebuke from voters when they approved a GOP-sponsored constitutional amendment to curb a governor’s emergency powers. Republicans blocked many of Wolf’s priorities, including raising billions of dollars in taxes, boosting the minimum wage and expanding restrictions on gun purchases. But, unlike the deficits Wolf faced when he took office, Wolf is leaving with billions of dollars in reserve, thanks to inflation-juiced tax collections and billions of dollars in federal pandemic aid.
GOV. TOM WOLF