When a region that built this Commonwealth is treated as an afterthought, it becomes necessary for its people to demand firm representation.
This contract is a written pledge from a candidate for the Pennsylvania State Senate to protect Southwestern Pennsylvania through legislation, oversight, and budget votes. It is a standard by which my service will be judged.
As a state senator, I will vote to repeal Act 77 of 2019 and restore election laws that protect voters in rural and small-town communities where ballot security and transparency matter. Southwestern Pennsylvania deserves elections that are clear, verifiable, and trusted, not rules written to benefit population centers at our expense.
I will represent the people of Southwestern Pennsylvania, not Harrisburg insiders or party leadership. My votes will reflect the needs of Bedford, Fayette, Somerset, and Scottdale, even when that means standing alone against pressure from leadership or special interests.
As a legislator, I will support bills that eliminate the school property tax, which disproportionately harms seniors, working families, and fixed-income homeowners in Southwestern Pennsylvania. No family here should lose their home to fund a system Harrisburg refuses to reform.
I will support state laws that allow education dollars to follow the student and give parents in Southwestern Pennsylvania real choices. This includes defending homeschool families, expanding career and technical education, and ensuring our students can stay here, work here, and build lives here.
In the Senate, I will vote to protect natural gas, coal, nuclear, and manufacturing jobs that power this region. I will oppose legislation that sacrifices Southwestern Pennsylvania workers to satisfy political agendas driven by Philadelphia or out-of-state interests.
I will oppose state regulations that harm family farms and property owners in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Senate policy should protect those who feed the Commonwealth, not burden them with rules written by people who have never worked the land.
Every Senate vote on taxes and regulation affects whether jobs stay or leave. I will oppose job-killing taxes and support legislation that keeps manufacturing, skilled trades, and small businesses rooted in Southwestern Pennsylvania.
I will vote against legislation that infringes on the Second Amendment, religious liberty, or free expression. Rights protected on paper mean nothing if senators refuse to defend them when it matters.
As a state senator, I will support laws that expand rural health care access, promote telemedicine, allow small businesses to pool insurance, and lower health care costs for families in Southwestern Pennsylvania. At the same time, I will defend life at every stage and champion policies that protect the dignity of every unborn child while supporting families who choose life.
I will vote against Senate bills that impose costs on local governments, school districts, or taxpayers without funding. Southwestern Pennsylvania communities should not be forced to raise taxes because Harrisburg lawmakers avoid accountability.
The state budget is where regions win or lose.
I will scrutinize every budget vote and will not cave to Philadelphia-driven interests that shift costs onto Southwestern Pennsylvania. Our region will not be used as a bargaining chip in Harrisburg budget deals.
I will use my Senate role to demand transparency, expose waste, and challenge insider deals that hurt Southwestern Pennsylvania. I will answer to voters here at home, not lobbyists or political bosses.
This contract is a pledge to protect Southwestern Pennsylvania through every Senate vote, every budget fight, and every piece of legislation.
I am asking for your vote not to manage decline, but to defend this region and lead a comeback.
Signed,
Harry Young Cochran
Candidate for Pennsylvania State Senate