Wolf to take oath as 47th Pa. governor
HARRISBURG — Tom Wolf, the only Democrat nationally to unseat a sitting Republican governor in the Nov. 4 election, was poised to be sworn in today as Pennsylvania's 47th governor at an outdoor ceremony at the state Capitol.
The former businessman's personal wealth and political circumstances helped sweep him into Pennsylvania's highest public office as he crushed GOP Gov. Tom Corbett's re-election bid by winning nearly 55 percent of the vote.
Wolf, 65, was scheduled to take his oath at noon outside the rear entrance to the Capitol. His running mate, state Sen. Mike Stack of Philadelphia, was to take his oath as lieutenant governor earlier in a state Senate ceremony that is closed to the public.
Stack will relinquish the Senate seat he has held for 14 years, but the duties of his new office include serving as the Senate's presiding officer.
Wolf was scheduled to take his oath following an introduction by former Gov. Ed Rendell, who served two terms before Corbett's election. Penny Blackwell, a judge from Wolf's native York County, will administer his oath while Wolf places his hand on a Bible that has been in his family since the mid-19th century.
Post-inaugural events include an art show at the Pennsylvania State Museum and will culminate in a $100-a-ticket bash at the Hershey Lodge that will feature live musical performances and a broad array of food and drinks from across the state.
Wolf says his inaugural address will focus on the “grand themes” of what he hopes to accomplish, rather than specific initiatives. It will stress bipartisanship as he and the GOP-controlled Legislature prepare to lock horns over how to close a projected $2 billion-plus deficit in the state budget for the year that starts July 1.
“The magnitude of the crisis just makes it more important that we focus on what brings us together rather than what divides us,” he said this week.
Wolf is scheduled to present his first state budget plan to lawmakers on March 3. An approved budget is supposed to be in place before the current one expires June 30.
A year ago, Wolf was virtually a political unknown, one of several Democrats eager to capitalize on Corbett's sagging popularity amid a public backlash over nearly $900 million in school funding cuts that he supported in 2011 and complaints even among Republicans about his weak leadership skills.
The scion of a wealthy family in a town that bears its name, Wolf served two years as Rendell's revenue secretary, but for nearly three decades had focused mainly on running the family's building products distribution business.
