Josh Shapiro, Democrat For PA Governor, Wins Endorsement Of Philly Firefighters Union

HARRISBURG — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro has earned the backing of the Philadelphia Firefighters' and Paramedics' Union, a significant endorsement since the same group backed Donald Trump for president during Trump's reelection bid in 2020.

The union, which represents more than 4,500 current and retired city firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, and officers with the Philadelphia Fire Department, announced its endorsement of Shapiro on Wednesday.

In addition to the support of Trump for reelection two years ago, the same city firefighters' union had also most recently backed Kathy Barnette, a Republican and Montgomery County resident who was running in the primary this year for the United States Senate race in Pennsylvania.

The union's endorsement comes on the heels of Shapiro also winning the support of a group of Pennsylvania Republicans who broke ranks with their party and put their backing behind Shapiro, the state's current attorney general who resides in Abington Township, Montgomery County.

"I am honored to have the support of the Philadelphia Firefighters' and Paramedics' Union, and I will fight for them every single day as Governor," Shapiro said in a statement. "As Attorney General, I have fought for good-paying, union jobs and stood up to attacks on the union way of life — and I will always stand with Pennsylvania workers as Governor."

The vice president IAFF Local 22, Chuck McQuilkin, said the group backed Shapiro because the candidate has proven he will fight for the group's members.

"The men and women of Local 22 are brave public servants who work every day to keep our communities safe and healthy — and to us, it is critical we have leaders who stand with us," McQuilkin said in a statement.

Shapiro's campaign said that Shapiro is committed to protecting collective bargaining rights for the firefighters' union and would work to ensure they have what they need in order to keep the community safe.

"Local 22 will always have a seat at the table in a Shapiro administration," reads a news release from Shapiro's campaign.

McQuilkin stated that the union opposes Republican candidate Doug Mastriano, because he, "made it clear that the days of the unions having any kind of say in the state are over ... to me, right there, that's all you need to know."

Mastriano, a state senator representing a district in south central Pennsylvania that covers Adams, Franklin, York and Cumberland Counties, is said to be polling within the margin of error.

The group of prominent Republicans who recently announced their support for Shapiro said they worry that Mastriano is too extreme for Pennsylvania, which is often considered to be a 'purple' state, but which also has more registered Democrats than Republicans.

One of Mastriano's positions that are considered to be more extreme is his stance on abortion: he has stated that he opposes abortion in virtually all cases, even those where the health of the mother is at risk.

Recently, however, media reports say that Mastriano has not been talking about abortion much, instead focusing his campaign over other issues such as inflation, crime and jobs.

Check out this recent article on WHYY to learn more.