In his first reelection campaign TV ad, Gov. Josh Shapiro highlights free breakfast for Pa. kids
“When your belly is full, you can pay attention in class and be your best self,” Shapiro tells a child in the ad, which begins airing this week.
In the first TV ad buy of his reelection campaign, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is leading with free school breakfast.
Shapiro, a first-term Democrat seeking reelection this year, kicked off his campaign’s media spending with an ad about Pennsylvania’s free breakfast program, which is available to Pennsylvania’s 1.7 million schoolchildren.
Free school breakfast and lunch are supported by a majority of Americans, public polling shows.
For a moderate Democratic governor in a swing state with his eyes on a potential 2028 presidential run, it’s no coincidence that he would lead with one of his most popular successes.
The ad portrays a child reporter interviewing the governor for “Commonwealth Kids News” about universal free breakfast, a policy that began during former Gov. Tom Wolf’s tenure using temporary pandemic funds from the federal government. Shapiro continues the program today, and asked the split legislature to continue funding it as part of this year’s 2026-27 fiscal year state budget.
“When your belly is full, you can pay attention in class and be your best self, and that sets you up for success,” Shapiro tells the girl interviewing him in the ad, outside what looks like a suburban Pennsylvania home.
“I heard a rumor you’re getting rid of homework,” she then asks Shapiro.
“I don’t think so, but nice try,” he says with a laugh.
The ads began airing Thursday on TV and digital platforms across the state. Shapiro’s campaign reserved $445,000 worth of air time through next week to air the ads in the Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre and Harrisburg media markets, according to Ad Impact, a site which tracks political ad spending.
It was not immediately clear how much Shapiro’s spent on digital ads that will appear on social media or streaming platforms.
Shapiro has frequently cited universal free breakfast as evidence of his ability to work with a Democratic state House and GOP-controlled state Senate.
He served breakfast to Upper Dublin students last week to highlight the growth of the program, which served 93 million breakfasts statewide during the 2024-25 school year, according to his office.
The TV ads are one of the first indications of how Shapiro plans to use his massive $37 million war chest after breaking fundraising records to start the year.
His GOP opponent, state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, has struggled to compete with Shapiro’s fundraising efforts, raising just $1.4 million. She aired some advertisements ahead of the primary election, including some TV and digital ads, but has yet to reserve air time for the general election, according to Ad Impact.
