Mark Singel

Mark Singel
Chairperson of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party
In office June 3, 1995 – December 31, 1997
Preceded by	Linda Rhodes
Succeeded by	Tina Tartaglione
27th Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania
In office January 20, 1987 – January 17, 1995 Acting Governor: June 14 - December 13, 1993
Governor	Bob Casey
Preceded by	William Scranton
Succeeded by	Mark Schweiker
Member of the Pennsylvania Senate from the 35th district
In office January 6, 1981 – January 20, 1987[1]
Preceded by	Lou Coppersmith
Succeeded by	William Stewart
Personal details
Born	Mark Stephen Singel September 12, 1953 Johnstown, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	Pennsylvania State University, University Park

Mark Stephen Singel (born September 12, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 27th Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1995, alongside Governor Bob Casey. Singel served as the state's acting governor from June 14, 1993 to December 13, 1993, during Casey's lengthy battle with amyloidosis and subsequent multiple organ transplant.

Early political career

Singel was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. A graduate of Penn State University, Singel was elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate in 1980. After winning reelection in 1984, he sought and won the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor in 1986. As Casey's running mate, the Democratic ticket won a narrow victory over the Republican ticket of incumbent Lieutenant Governor William Scranton III and State Senator Mike Fisher. Casey and Singel won re-election in 1990.

During his second term, Governor Casey was diagnosed with Appalachian familial amyloidosis, a rare and usually fatal liver disorder. Casey required a risky experimental multiple organ transplant. During his lengthy recovery, Singel served as Pennsylvania's acting governor.

Singel sought and lost the Democratic senatorial nomination in 1992 to Lynn Yeakel, who went on to narrowly lose the general election to incumbent Arlen Specter.

1994 gubernatorial campaign

Singel won the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 1994 and faced Republican U.S. Congressman Tom Ridge in the general election. Singel lost the general election to Ridge.

Some people in the party blamed Casey for Singel's loss, noting that Casey, who was pro-life, gave only lackluster support to the pro-choice Singel. Casey declined to either campaign or raise money for Singel's candidacy – an incident that reportedly caused a deep rift between the two men.

Singel's loss was also attributed to the influence of the Reginald McFadden case. McFadden had been sentenced to life in prison in 1970 for a robbery/homicide. In 1992, the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons voted to release him. At the time, Singel, as Lt. Governor, served on the board and had voted in favour of McFadden's release. In 1994 (during the gubernatorial race), McFadden was released from prison (after Gov. Casey signed the commutation papers) and subsequently murdered two people and kidnapped and raped a third within 90 days of being released. When news of the murders broke, Singel's opponent, Tom Ridge, turned Singel's vote to release McFadden into a campaign issue. This issue, which was compared to the case of Willie Horton, was cited as another reason why Singel lost the campaign.^[2]

Later career

After Singel's unsuccessful gubernatorial bid, he remained active in Democratic politics. He served as chairman of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party from June 3, 1995^[3] to December 31, 1997^[4] and was a Presidential Elector in 1996. He briefly considered running against Senator Rick Santorum in 2000, but withdrew his name from consideration and backed eventual nominee, Pittsburgh-area Congressman Ron Klink.

In 2000, Singel joined the Philadelphia-based law firm Duane Morris as lobbyist and director of its Johnstown, Pennsylvania, branch office. Singel started his own firm, The Winter Group, in 2005 and continues to practice government affairs today in downtown Harrisburg.

The Pennsylvania Report named him to the 2003 "The Pennsylvania Report Power 75" list of influential figures in Pennsylvania politics, describing him as a Harrisburg lobbyist and "Rendell Confidante" and noting that he had been a prominent surrogate for Rendell during the 2002 gubernatorial election and "had a big hand in filling positions with the new [Rendell] administration."^[5] He also occasionally teaches classes at the local Penn State Harrisburg campus. He was named to the PoliticsPA list of "Sy Snyder's Power 50" list of influential individuals in Pennsylvania politics in 2003.^[6]

On February 19, 2010, Singel announced his intention to run in the special election to fill the seat of the late Democrat John Murtha, provided Murtha's widow decided not to run. He ended his bid for Congress ten days later, citing the need for the party to unite behind one candidate.^[7]

References

1. Cox, Harold (2004). "Pennsylvania Senate - 1987-1988" (PDF). Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
2. To More Inmates, Life Term Means Dying Behind Bars by Adam Liptak, New York Times, October 2, 2005. (retrieved on December 10, 2008.)
3. "Singel says goal is to rebuild party". The Reading Eagle. June 5, 1995. Retrieved January 18, 2010.
4. Jackson, Peter (January 2, 1998). "Singel resigns as state Dem leader". The Observer-Reporter. Retrieved January 18, 2010.
5. "The PA Report "Power 75" List" (PDF). Pennsylvania Report. Capital Growth, Inc. January 31, 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-20.
6. "Power 50". PoliticsPA. The Publius Group. 2003. Archived from the original on 2004-04-17.
7. Kraushaar, Josh (February 25, 2010). "Mark Singel drops out of race to replace Murtha". Politico. Retrieved February 26, 2010.