Eugene DePasquale

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eugene DePasquale
Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, July 12 2017 (cropped).jpg
51st Auditor General of Pennsylvania
In office
January 15, 2013 – January 19, 2021
GovernorTom Corbett
Tom Wolf
Preceded byJack Wagner
Succeeded byTimothy DeFoor
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from the 95th district
In office
January 2, 2007 – January 15, 2013
Preceded byStephen Stetler
Succeeded byKevin Schreiber
Personal details
Born
Eugenio Anthony DePasquale

(1971-08-03) August 3, 1971 (age 50)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Children2
EducationCollege of Wooster (BA)
University of Pittsburgh (MPA)
Widener University (JD)
WebsiteCampaign website

Eugenio Anthony DePasquale (born August 3, 1971) is an American Democratic politician who served as the Pennsylvania Auditor General from 2013 to 2021. From 2007 to 2013, he served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing the York County-based 95th district. He was the Democratic nominee for Pennsylvania's 10th congressional district in the 2020 election. Shortly after his loss he filed to run for the same district in 2022.

Early life and education[]

A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, DePasquale graduated from Central Catholic High School and received a bachelor's degree from the College of Wooster. He later earned an M.P.A. from the University of Pittsburgh and a J.D. from Widener University Commonwealth Law School.[1]

DePasquale is the grandson of Eugene "Jeep" DePasquale, who served in the Pittsburgh City Council between 1971 and 1989.[2]

Early career[]

DePasquale moved to York in 1997. He served as director of economic development for the City of York from January 2002 – September 2003.[citation needed]

From 2003 to 2006, DePasquale served as deputy secretary for community revitalization and local government support of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.[3]

Political career[]

Pennsylvania House of Representatives[]

When incumbent state representative Steve Stetler resigned from his seat and withdrew from the ballot during the 2006 elections, DePasquale announced his intent to replace him. The York County Democratic Party selected him as their replacement nominee in August, and he defeated Republican nominee Karen Emenheiser 58.3% to 41.7%.[4] His legislative district included all of the city of York, Spring Garden Township, part of West Manchester Township, and the boroughs of North York and West York.

DePasquale was re-elected in 2008, defeating Republican candidate Lon Emenheiser 75.1% to 24.9%.[5] In 2010, DePasquale was unopposed both in his primary and general re-election bids.[6]

Pennsylvania Auditor General[]

2012 campaign[]

Main article: 2012 Pennsylvania Auditor General election

In April 2011, DePasquale announced that he would be running for State Auditor General in 2012 to succeed incumbent Jack Wagner, who was term-limited.[7] DePasquale made Marcellus shale drilling a central issue of his campaign, and promised to order an immediate performance audit of the Department of Environmental Protection to ensure the state's water supply had not been compromised by drilling.[8] He defeated Republican state representative John Maher in the fall general election.[9] Both Maher and DePasquale were concurrently re-elected without opposition to their seats in the state house.[10]

DePasquale resigned his seat in the state house on January 15, 2013, and was sworn-in as auditor general later that day. He became the first person from York County to assume statewide elected office since George Leader was elected governor in 1954.[11]

2016 campaign[]

Main article: 2016 Pennsylvania Auditor General election

In the 2016 election, DePasquale was reelected auditor general with 50% of the vote, defeating Republican John Brown.[12]

Tenure[]

In July 2014, DePasquale announced results of an audit of the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) water programs related to the development of the state's shale gas reserves.[13] Results of that audit showed the DEP had been unprepared to effectively administer laws and regulations to protect drinking water and unable to efficiently respond to citizen complaints in the period 2009-2012.[14][15] The report cited sloppy record-keeping, lax oversight, and poor communication with citizens.[16]

A September 2016 report from the Auditor General's office revealed that over 3,000 rape kits were backlogged by local law enforcement agencies, awaiting testing, with 60% of them waiting untested for over a year.[17] A followup in May 2020 announced that the untested backlog had been reduced by 97%, due to increased financial support from the state budget, outside groups and federal programs.[18][19]

In the wake of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, the Auditor General's office released a report in November 2018 on the subject of gun safety in Pennsylvania and access to guns by those requiring mental health care, calling for greater monitoring by gun sellers of buyers in emotional distress.[20] DePasquale's office likewise audited the Pennsylvania background-check system for possible gaps and errors in its screenings for ineligible purchasers.[21]

Along with Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, DePasquale co-chaired a School Safety Task Force that gathered feedback about safety concerns, drills and security measures to prevent or mitigate school shootings.[22]

In February 2019, DePasquale announced that officials in 18 Pennsylvania counties had disclosed that they had accepted improper (but not illegal) gifts from voting-machine vendors, and that several additional officials had failed to disclose such gifts.[23] This followed an investigation about the security of voter registration data, prompted by election-security concerns originating in the 2016 election.[24]

2020 U.S. House of Representatives candidacy[]

Main article: 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania § District 10

Term-limited from running again as Auditor General, DePasquale announced in June 2019 his candidacy for the United States House of Representatives to represent Pennsylvania's 10th congressional district.[25] He won the Democratic nomination on June 3, 2020.[26] DePasquale was defeated in the general election, with incumbent Scott Perry being declared the victor on November 5th.[27] DePasquale subsequently conceded the race.[28]

Electoral history[]

Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District General Election, 2020
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Scott Perry (incumbent) 208,896 53.3
Democratic Eugene DePasquale 182,938 46.7
Total votes 391,834 100.0
Republican hold


Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District Primary Results, 2020[29]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Eugene DePasquale 45,453 57.4
Democratic Tom Brier 33,661 42.6
Total votes 79,114 100.0
Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 95, 2006 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Eugene DePasquale 7,561 58.28
Republican Karen Emenheiser 5,412 41.72
Total votes 12,973 100.00
Democratic hold
Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 95, 2008 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Eugene DePasquale (incumbent) 17,887 75.07
Republican Lon Emenheiser 5,941 24.93
Total votes 23,828 100.00
Democratic hold
Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 95, 2010 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Eugene DePasquale (incumbent) 9,832 100.00
Total votes 9,832 100.00
Democratic hold
Pennsylvania House of Representatives 95th District Election, 2010
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Eugene DePasquale (inc.) 9,832 100.00
Pennsylvania Auditor Election, 2012
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Eugene DePasquale 2,729,565 49.73
Republican John Maher 2,548,767 46.43
Libertarian Elizabeth Betsy Summers 210,876 3.84
Pennsylvania House of Representatives 95th District Election, 2012
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Eugene DePasquale (inc.) 16,804 83.04
YLP Dave Moser 3,431 16.96

References[]

  1. ^ "Meet Auditor General Eugene DePasquale". Pennsylvania Dept of the Auditor General. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  2. ^ Schmitz, Jon (January 2, 2008). "Former Pittsburgh councilman Eugene "Jeep" DePasquale dies at 85". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  3. ^ "Rep. Eugene A. DePasquale Biography". Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. 2008. Retrieved November 15, 2008.
  4. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 27, 2008. Retrieved January 9, 2009.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ^ "Commonwealth of PA - Elections Information". February 21, 2009. Archived from the original on February 21, 2009. Retrieved October 18, 2017.
  6. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 28, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2010.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on August 15, 2011. Retrieved April 13, 2011.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^ DePasquale, Eugene. "DePasquale Will Order Review of Water Protection Programs As First Action If Elected Auditor General". Eugene4pa.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
  9. ^ Stonesifer, Tim (November 7, 2012). "Eugene DePasquale wins state auditor general seat". York (PA) Daily Record. Archived from the original on November 10, 2012. Retrieved November 8, 2012.
  10. ^ Clonan, Elyse. "Auditor General Race Raises Questions About Running For Two Offices Simultaneously". Politicspa.com. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  11. ^ Murphy, Jen. "Eugene DePasquale makes midstate history as Pennsylvania's new auditor general". PennLive.com. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  12. ^ Pedro A., Coates. "Pennsylvania Department of State Elections". Archived from the original on November 13, 2016.
  13. ^ "Pennsylvania Department of the Auditor General -Auditor General DePasquale Initiates Audit to Ensure Safe Drinking Water". www.paauditor.gov. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  14. ^ "Auditor general criticizes DEP". Washington County Observer-Reporter. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  15. ^ "Pennsylvania Department of the Auditor General -Auditor General DePasquale Says Rapid Shale Gas Development Outpaced DEP's Ability to Oversee Industry, Protect Water Quality". www.paauditor.gov. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  16. ^ Phillips, Susan. "Pa. Auditor General: Don't rely on DEP for good information". NPR StateImpact. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  17. ^ Langley, Karen. "Pa. auditor general blames state for backlog on rape kits". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  18. ^ Guza, Megan. "Pennsylvania's backlog of 3,000 untested rape kits now under 100, auditor general says". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  19. ^ Meyer, Katie. "Auditor general praises dwindling rape kit backlog". PA Post. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  20. ^ Finnerty, John. "Pa. auditor general calls for comprehensive action on gun safety". Johnstown Tribune-Democrat. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  21. ^ Tawa, Steve. "Auditor general to evaluate Pennsylvania's gun background check system". KYW Newsradio. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  22. ^ "Wolf sets up task force in effort to improve school safety". Associated Press. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  23. ^ "Auditor says officials took voting machine vendors' freebies". Associated Press. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  24. ^ Scolforo, Mark. "State auditor to study security of Pennsylvania voter rolls". Associated Press. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  25. ^ Thompson, Charles (June 30, 2019). "Pa. Auditor General Eugene DePasquale is running for Congress, and here's why". Archived from the original on June 30, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  26. ^ "Pennsylvania Primary Election Results: 10th Congressional District". NYTimes.com. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  27. ^ Jagoda, Naomi (November 5, 2020). "Freedom Caucus member Scott Perry wins fifth term in Pennsylvania". The Hill. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  28. ^ Eugene DePasquale [@DePasqualePA] (November 5, 2020). "Just now I called @RepScottPerry to congratulate him on a hard-earned victory. Below is my statement as I end my campaign for Congress. It was an honor to meet you and hear your stories. And I promise you, our work is far from finished" (Tweet). Retrieved November 7, 2020 – via Twitter.
  29. ^ Boockvar, Kathy. "Pennsylvania Elections – Office Results | Representative in Congress". electionreturns.pa.gov. Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Retrieved June 2, 2020.

External links[]

Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Preceded by
Stephen Stetler 		Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
for the 95th district
2007–2013 		Succeeded by
Kevin Schreiber
Party political offices
Preceded by
Jack Wagner 		Democratic nominee for Auditor General of Pennsylvania
2012, 2016 		Succeeded by
Nina Ahmad
Political offices
Preceded by
Jack Wagner 		Auditor General of Pennsylvania
2013–2021 		Succeeded by
Timothy DeFoor
Retrieved from ""