Poll: Tom Wolf is third most popular Democratic governor

• Ed Mahon
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  Ed Mahon comes to Spotlight PA from PA Post, where he covered state politics and policy, produced radio stories that were broadcast on public media stations throughout the state and on NPR’s national newscasts, and co-wrote a weekday newsletter. Prior to joining PA Post, Ed worked for six years as an investigative and political reporter for the York Daily Record, part of the USA Today Network. His reporting on failures in Pennsylvania’s system for protecting domestic abuse victims was a finalist in the national 2018 Livingston Awards for Young Journalists in the local reporting category. He was also part of a team whose coverage of the criminal justice system, including the aggressive use of civil asset forfeiture by York County prosecutors, received the 2018 G. Richard Dew Award for Journalistic Service from the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association. Before joining the York Daily Record, Ed covered K-12 education at the Centre Daily Times in State College and worked as a stringer for suburban sections of The Philadelphia Inquirer. He grew up in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.

 Matt Rourke / AP

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf gestures after he was sworn in for his second term, Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019, at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa.

On average, Republican governors are more popular than Democrats

Matt Rourke / AP

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf gestures after he was sworn in for his second term, Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019, at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa.

• Pollster Morning Consult has some good news for Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf. While the former York County businessman is the 21st most popular governor in the country, among Democratic governors, he ranks third. He has a 53 percent approval rating.

• Montana’s Steve Bullock, who is running for president, and Delaware’s John Carney each has a slightly higher approval rating: 54 percent.

• A few of Pennsylvania’s neighbors make notable appearances: West Virginia’s Jim Justice, who switched from Democrat to Republican in 2017, ranks near the bottom as the 45th most popular governor. Republican Larry Hogan of Maryland, who recently criticized President Donald Trump’s “go back” tweets, is the second most popular governor.

Best of the rest

Matt Rourke / Associated Press

In this Jan. 15, 2013, Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale is seen in Harrisburg, Pa. DePasquale said Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, that officials in 18 of 67 counties reported accepting gifts, meals or trips from firms competing to sell new voting machines ahead of the 2020 elections.

• Pennsylvania lawmakers cut the budget for the office of state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale. DePasquale is running for Congress, and some Republican lawmakers said he spends too much time seeking publicity, PennLive’s Jan Murphy reports.

• This database from The Washington Post looks at where the most oxycodone and hydrocodone pills were distributed across the country. In Pennsylvania, Cambria County ranked first for the number of pills distributed per person from 2006 through 2012.

• Yesterday, I reported that Pennsylvania Democrats were split on the question of impeaching President Donald Trump. But they are unified in their support of gradually raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Republican Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick of Bucks County also voted in favor of the measure, which passed the House 231-199.