Pa. election 2024: A complete guide to the primary candidates for auditor general

This story originally appeared on Spotlight PA.

During the April 23 primary election, Pennsylvania Democrats and Republicans will pick their parties’ candidates for state auditor general, one of the commonwealth’s three elected row officers.

The winners will face each other during the Nov. 5 general election.

This year, incumbent Tim DeFoor is the only candidate on the Republican ballot. Democrats will choose between two candidates — Philadelphia state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta and Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley.

Pennsylvania’s primaries are closed, so only registered Democrats and Republicans can vote for candidates in their parties’ respective races during these spring contests. (Unaffiliated and third-party voters can vote on statewide ballot questions, local referenda, and special elections; all voters can participate in candidate elections in November.)

The auditor general monitors how public dollars are spent, to catch fraud and graft if they occur. The office does this by conducting financial audits, and monitoring whether state-funded programs are doing what they’re supposed to.

The auditor general is elected for a four-year term, and an individual can hold the role for a maximum of two terms.

Pennsylvania created the position as a politically appointed office in 1809. In 1850, it became an elected position. There have been 50 auditors general in Pennsylvania history, and this year’s incumbent was the 41st chosen by popular vote.

Since the office’s creation, 25 Republicans and 22 Democrats have held the position (the three other officeholders belonged to now-defunct third parties).

This guide may be updated with additional information as the primary election approaches.

Table of Contents

• What does Pennsylvania’s auditor general do?
• Democratic candidates
  • Malcolm Kenyatta
  • Mark Pinsley
• Republican incumbent
  • Tim DeFoor

What does Pennsylvania’s auditor general do?

An auditor general — also called a comptroller, state auditor, or auditor of public accounts in other states — monitors the spending of public funds. In Pennsylvania, the department describes itself as the “chief fiscal watchdog of the commonwealth.”

The agency performs financial and performance audits of everything from district courts and municipal pension plans, to state-owned universities and commonwealth departments. The reports it regularly releases detail its findings and recommend fixes and policies.

The auditor general’s office accepts reports of “suspected misuse, fraud, or waste” of state tax dollars through an official hotline. It also provides financial literacy resources across the state through the Be Money Smart initiative to promote financial independence.

Democratic candidates

Malcolm Kenyatta

Website

A native of Philadelphia, Kenyatta graduated from Temple University and Drexel University before working as a community activist and on diversity and inclusion efforts at the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia.

He was elected to his North Philly-based seat in 2018 and became the first openly LGBTQ person of color to serve in the General Assembly. Elected at 28, he was also one of the state’s youngest-ever representatives.

Since taking office, Kenyatta has been an outspoken progressive, giving fiery speeches that often go viral. He supports a higher minimum wage, stricter gun laws, and LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections. He’s been a chief proponent of nondiscrimination legislation in particular, sponsoring a long-sought bill that would add sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of protected classes under Pennsylvania’s Human Relations Act.

He’s also sponsored legislation on less high-profile issues, such as establishing a state cybersecurity board or adding clawback language to all state grant contracts. However, in the divided General Assembly, few of these issues have won bipartisan support, and none have yet become law.

In addition to running for auditor general, Kenyatta is seeking reelection to the state House.

Kenyatta has dabbled in national politics, serving as a surrogate for President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign. In 2023, Biden appointed Kenyatta the chair of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans.

Kenyatta was the first openly LGBTQ person of color to seek a U.S. Senate seat — a bid he lost in the 2022 primary election to U.S. Sen. John Fetterman.

On his website, Kenyatta says he wants to be auditor general “because it’s time for the underdog to be the watchdog for Pennsylvania’s working families. To ask the tough questions, to help reimagine and streamline government, and to build the coalitions to fix what’s wrong.”

According to his campaign website, Kenyatta would do the following if elected:

• Create a Bureau of Labor and Worker Protections to investigate “wage theft and union busting,” and ensure businesses follow labor laws concerning independent contractors.
• Take back responsibility for annual school compliance audits from the Pennsylvania Department of Education, a change the current auditor general made in 2022.
• Ensure hospital nonprofits and long-term care providers disclose their use of state dollars.
• Review the state’s approach to reducing gun violence.

Kenyatta has accused his Democratic auditor general opponent, Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley, of racism — a claim Pinsley said is without merit.

In a Ring video that circulated on social media, Kenyatta is seen telling a constituent, “There’s the guy Mark Pinsley, who I told you don’t like Black people.”

The video was recorded inside the home of the mother-in-law of one of Kenyatta’s former state House challengers, according to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star. That candidate, Jon Hankins, was recently removed from the primary ballot following a residency challenge.

In a statement to news outlets, Kenyatta did not explain the basis for the accusation, instead calling the video “dirty political tricks.” Pinsley said the accusation is false and told Lehigh Valley News that it “doesn’t show good temperament.”

Endorsements: Pennsylvania Democratic Party; unions including the state chapter of the American Federation of Teachers and the Pennsylvania State Building and Construction Trades Council; the Working Families Party; Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey; seven members of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation; and members of the state legislature, including House Speaker Joanna McClinton of Philadelphia.

Mark Pinsley

Website

Pinsley graduated from Northeastern University and the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. He is a U.S. Army Reserve veteran who has owned and run businesses for three decades.

He served as a commissioner in South Whitehall Township, and unsuccessfully ran for state Senate in 2018 and 2022.

Pinsley is currently Lehigh County controller, a position he won for the first time in 2019. He won reelection last year before announcing his campaign for state office on Dec. 1.

In that role, Pinsley has developed a reputation as a progressive. For example, he pitched moving county money out of Wells Fargo because its political action committee donated to anti-abortion candidates. (In an email, Pinsley said the county released a request for proposals but none of the vendors “had both the necessary insurance coverage and abstained from political donation.” The county is still banking with Wells Fargo, though Pinsley said, “We managed to reduce our fees by approximately $100,000.”)

Pinsley provides other highlights of his tenure as county controller on his campaign website, including an investigation into what he called the “systemic overdiagnosis” of medical child abuse (formerly known as Munchausen syndrome by proxy) in the area.

“My resume and my record are beyond question, and the Republican Party won’t be able to paint me as extreme or unqualified,” Pinsley told the Pennsylvania Capital-Star. “… I am the only candidate who knows the job, has done the job, and can win the job.”

As Pennsylvania’s auditor general, Pinsley says he will “audit for impact,” which he defines as helping citizens, enforcing policy, and eliminating waste, in addition to acting as a financial watchdog.

Pinsley says his top goals as auditor general include:

• Conducting a “sweeping, comprehensive audit” of the Pennsylvania public education system, which he called “terribly underfunded.”
• Evaluating county election departments and the support they receive from the state to “ensure Pennsylvania invests in and rigorously defends democracy.”
• Looking at the effectiveness of the state’s workforce development programs.
• Finding savings in state health care spending.

Pinsley has said that as auditor general he wants to prevent state money from being spent at companies that support anti-abortion causes, audit wage theft, and study the economic impact of gun violence.

In February, the Morning Call and The Inquirer reported that Pinsley’s campaign had submitted nominating petitions that contained allegedly forged signatures, including those of several elected officials.

In an email to Spotlight PA, Pinsley said no objections had been raised with the Department of State.

“Certain individuals have chosen alternative avenues to voice their concerns, seemingly bypassing the formal process and using the media as their primary source to issue complaints,” he said. “The deviation from formal procedures raises questions regarding the genuine intent behind these actions, leading us to believe their motivations may extend beyond a sincere desire to address the issues. Instead, garnering media attention may be the primary objective.”

His Democratic opponent, state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, has accused Pinsley of racism — a claim Pinsley said is without merit.

In a Ring video that circulated on social media, Kenyatta is seen telling a constituent, “There’s the guy Mark Pinsley, who I told you don’t like Black people.”

The video was recorded inside the home of the mother-in-law of one of Kenyatta’s former state House challengers, according to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star. That candidate, Jon Hankins, was recently removed from the primary ballot following a residency challenge.

In a statement to news outlets, Kenyatta did not explain the basis for the accusation, instead calling the video “dirty political tricks.” Pinsley said the accusation is false and told Lehigh Valley News that it “doesn’t show good temperament.”

Endorsements: VoteVets; Parents’ Medical Rights Group.

Republican incumbent

Tim DeFoor

Website

A Dauphin County native, DeFoor graduated from Penn State University, the University of Pittsburgh, and the Harrisburg University of Science and Technology.

DeFoor served as a special agent for the state attorney general’s office, investigating Medicaid fraud. He was also a fraud investigator and internal auditor for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and as a federal contractor.

In 2015, DeFoor was elected Dauphin County controller. There, he won national awards and created the county’s first audit division.

In 2020, DeFoor was elected Pennsylvania’s auditor general, defeating Democrat Nina Ahmad. DeFoor is the first person of color to win a statewide office in Pennsylvania and the first Republican to hold the auditor general position since 1997.

In his announcement that he would seek another four years in office, DeFoor said his first term focused on transforming the auditor general’s office in a nonpartisan way, and that his second would center on “ensuring the job gets done.”

DeFoor has taken a different approach to the office than his predecessor, Democrat Eugene DePasquale.

DePasquale’s two terms as auditor general were marked by the regular release of special reports focused on policy issues seen as outside the traditional scope of the office. One laid out 12 recommendations for reducing gun violence deaths. Another estimated how much revenue the commonwealth was missing by not taxing marijuana.

DeFoor has primarily stuck to the office’s required functions: auditing local pension plans and volunteer firefighters’ relief associations, and making sure county offices and district courts handle state money properly.

During his first term, DeFoor released an audit that claimed a dozen school districts had raised local taxes “while holding millions of dollars in their General Funds.” He said the audit identified districts moving money so they would meet the state threshold to raise taxes, which he called a “shell game.” Critics said that DeFoor lacked an understanding of the districts’ budgeting processes.

DeFoor also closed the bureau that audited schools, which his office said led to 11 layoffs. Those responsibilities were transferred back to the state Department of Education.

According to his campaign website, DeFoor’s second-term priorities include:

• Cutting “wasteful government spending” to protect taxpayers and strengthen the economy.
• Increasing transparency by ending “loopholes” that allow Pennsylvania agencies to hide taxpayer-funded contracts from the public.

DeFoor serves on the Harrisburg Area Community College Foundation Board of Directors, the State YMCA of Pennsylvania Board of Directors, and the Chris “Handles” Franklin Foundation Board of Directors. He is a member of the Greater Harrisburg Area NAACP and the Pennsylvania State Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #78.

A month after DeFoor took office as auditor general, now opponent state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta questioned DeFoor about election fraud claims at a state House committee hearing. At the time, skepticism about election integrity was at a high, particularly among Republicans, after former president Donald Trump baselessly insisted his election had been subject to widespread fraud.

“I believe my election was fair,” DeFoor said. “As far as anybody else’s election, that’s a conversation that you would have to have with them, but I haven’t heard any complaints with regards to my specific election.”

Endorsements: Pennsylvania Republican Party.

Kate Mays, Paige Willett, and Wynter Muro are graduate students at New York University in the American Journalism Online program. They reported this story as part of a collaboration with Spotlight PA.

Spotlight PA’s Stephen Caruso and Katie Meyer contributed reporting.