Gov. Josh Shapiro sails to a second term in battleground Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro easily defeated Republican state Treasurer Stacy Garrity in his re-election bid, NBC News projects.

Shapiro, a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, did not face much competition from Garrity, who trailed by double digits in polls in the run-up to Election Day and was vastly outpaced in fundraising.

The substantial victory in a key battleground gives Shapiro a springboard into a potential White House bid. In the closing weeks of the contest, the governor launched a federal political action committee, New Path PAC, his first official step into national politics, which his campaign said was done so he could help congressional candidates in his state.

Shapiro enjoys solid approval ratings in his state, though voters are more mixed on whether he should seek the presidency. He spent much of the campaign seeking to boost downballot House candidates locked in much closer swing races, which could determine control of the chamber, as well as state legislators who could give Shapiro’s party full control in Harrisburg for the first time in more than 30 years.

Garrity, meanwhile, struggled to break through in the race, and polling showed a large chunk of voters were unfamiliar with her candidacy. Republicans had cleared the field for her run ahead of the state’s primary, seeking to avoid a messy fight that could distract from taking aim at Shapiro.

In the closing weeks of the general election, Garrity sought to put some space between her and President Donald Trump on tariffs, outlining her differences with him in her only televised debate with Shapiro.

The race was never particularly close, though the candidates did get into notable back-and-forths on data center policy, with Garrity coming out in favor of a moratorium followed by Shapiro announcing new, tougher mandates for developers in the state.