Governor Wolf’s First Year: A Comparative Analysis

Abstract

Tom Wolf’s first year as governor was dominated by the challenges of reaching a budget compromise with the Republican-­dominated General Assembly. This article provides an overview of the difficulties and accomplishments of the first year of the Wolf administration. The article draws a historical comparison with seven other governors—Leader, Scranton, Shafer, Shapp, Thornburg, Rendell, and Corbett—four Republicans and three Democrats, and it concludes with some observations drawn from these previous governors’ experiences that may inform the Wolf administration as it navigates its remaining years.