- AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Right after an historic win to become Pennsylvania’s first Black lieutenant governor, Austin Davis, 33, has been handed another big responsibility, chair of the personnel committee of the transition team for Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro.
In that capacity, Davis, D-35th District, will review hundreds of resumes, credentials and vet candidates for cabinet secretaries, deputies and other administration appointees. Davis will continue in his position as state representative until the inauguration on Jan. 17.
“This is a big deal,” said a political insider, who spoke on background. “The state bureaucracy is huge.”
“He (Shapiro) said he wanted me to be a strong governing partner to take on some of the biggest issues Pennsylvanians face and I have said that’s what I want to do, as lieutenant governor,” Davis said. “I will be taking a very active role in the transition.”
Seeking to move his agenda by working across the aisle with Republicans, Shapiro, last month, announced a transition team that is a who’s who of movers and shakers in business, labor and politics and law, including several prominent African Americans.
The transition leadership board will he headed by William Sasso, a prominent Republican and chairman emeritus of the law firm of Stradley Ronon. Some of the other members are: Ryan Boyer, business manager of the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council and the Laborers’ District Council; Gregory E. Deavens, president and CEO of Independence Health Group; Thomas B. Hagen, chairman of the board of Erie Indemnity Co. and Charisse R. Lillie, CEO of CRL Consulting, former assistant U. S. attorney and city solicitor.
Meanwhile, Davis credited hard work and the campaign’s $1.4 million in outreach to Black and brown voters for the big victory for Shapiro and himself, as lieutenant governor.
For months, the Shapiro-Davis team traveled throughout this commonwealth talking about how it wanted to govern and “be a governor and lieutenant governor for everyone,” Davis said.
“We went to large cities like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and cities like Aliquippa and Chester and rural places like Port Royal, Juniata County and talking about how we were going to make Pennsylvanians lives better,” Davis said in a Philadelphia Tribune interview. “Ultimately they made a decision on who they thought was best to deliver for their families and that Shapiro and I were the best team to do it. We talked about how we weren’t going to take any community for granted. I think when you look at the election results, and I think that was reflected in that tally.”
The Shapiro-Davis ticket received about 3 million votes, or about 56% of the total votes cast Nov. 8.
By contrast, state Sen. Doug Mastriano, R.-33rd District, Shapiro’s Republican opponent received about 2.2 million votes, or about 41% of the vote total.
The total was boosted by heavy turnout in Philadelphia and Allegheny counties, the state’s two biggest — with the most African-American voters. Shapiro will remain in his position as state attorney general until January.
According to Davis, the money for minority voter outreach was more than any other gubernatorial campaign in Pennsylvania.
Apparently, that voter outreach paid off.
In Philadelphia County, the Shapiro-Davis team posted about 426,885 votes, or about 86% of the vote, while in Allegheny County, the Shapiro-Davis team ticket received about 393,386 votes, or about 69% of the vote total.
African Americans in Allegheny County had several historical reasons to come out and vote, said Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey, who served in the state House with Davis, before making history as the first Black mayor of that city on Jan. 3.
“When you talk about Austin being on the ticket as the first African-American lieutenant governor, I think that inspired a lot of people who wanted to see that history,” Gainey said. “Let’s look at candidates that made history. state Rep. Summer Lee, D-34th District, was running for the office as the first African American in Congress in the state and that resonated.”
Lee, an attorney who earned her law degree at Howard University, won most of Pittsburgh and the nearby counties with large groups of Black and brown voters, political observers said.
According to Gainey, people were also impressed with the work ethic of the Shapiro-Davis ticket as they zig-zagged the state.
In addition, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman defeated former surgeon and television host Mehmet Oz for a U.S. Senate seat, making that seat Democratic. Pat Toomey, a Republican who held the seat retired and opted not to run.
Davis, Fetterman, Gainey and Lee, all represent parts of Allegheny County.
Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, Fetterman won all but three of the 66 wards in the city. He won 2.7 million votes, or 51.2% of the total votes cast, defeating Oz.
On Election Day in Philadelphia, many African-American voters said this midterm election was too important to sit out.
Diana Lewis, who lives in West Oak Lane, is a committee person in the 50th Ward, 28th Division, said the issues she was concerned about were a women’s right to choose, voter rights and preserving democracy, in light of the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., by supporters of Trump.
“I want the Democrats to win because we need it,” said Thomas Turner, 66, a veteran, who is retired and lives in North Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, state Sen. Vincent Hughes, D-7th District, said the political climate in the state legislature is much improved for Democrats, who flipped the state House and gained a seat in the Senate. This should put the Shapiro-Davis administration in a good position to move its agenda, Hughes said.
For his part, Shapiro often said during the campaign that one of the reasons he chose Davis as a running mate, was that he values the opinions of people with different backgrounds and experiences in his inner circle.
Davis’ appointment to such a prominent position in the Shapiro administration transition team is an indication that Davis will likely play a prominent role in the administration, political observers said.
“I want to take an active role in the community, someone that people can see and touch,” Davis said.
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