Inside Pennsylvania Society: Power schmoozing, budget ballads, and midterm jockeying in Manhattan

NEW YORK — Pennsylvania’s political class schmoozed their way across Midtown Manhattan this past weekend, bouncing from cocktail parties to swanky receptions organized to woo the elite ahead of a big midterm election year.

Hundreds of Pennsylvania politicos made their way for the state’s annual weekend of civility, bipartisanship, fundraising, and more than a few hangovers.

» READ MORE: Pennsylvania’s political elite return to New York’s Waldorf Astoria for ritzy dinner in its 127th year

Four Inquirer political writers were among those who traveled to the Pennsylvania Society gathering, chatting with lawmakers and interviewing candidates inside the moody bars and penthouse parties. Here are our takeaways.

Gov. Josh Shapiro this year has hosted fundraisers in New Jersey and Massachusetts for his unannounced reelection campaign.

But he didn’t need to make the rounds this weekend among Pennsylvania’s political elite as he emerges as a top contender for the 2028 Democratic nomination for president.

Shapiro traveled to New York City only to deliver his annual speech to the Pennsylvania Society and honor former U.S. Ambassador to Canada, David L. Cohen, who received the society’s top award.

» READ MORE: Josh Shapiro has a full-circle moment at Pennsylvania Society dinner in NYC, and David L. Cohen is honored

Instead of handshaking and fundraising like most incumbent governors would, Shapiro has largely avoided Pennsylvania Society mingling during his time as governor. His reelection campaign did not appear to change that.

Instead, Lt. Gov. Austin Davis hosted a solo fundraiser for their joint reelection ticket.

“There’s a lot of demands on the governor’s time,” Davis said following a speech at the annual luncheon hosted by the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association.

Three of the candidates vying to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans in the Third Congressional District had a busy weekend in New York. State Sen. Sharif Street, pediatric surgeon Ala Stanford, and State Rep. Morgan Cephas made the rounds.

Stanford held a somewhat star-studded fundraiser Thursday evening, hosted, according to a posted listing for the private event, by Hamilton actor Leslie Odom Jr. (who did not attend but lent his name).

» READ MORE: Candidates for Dwight Evans’ congressional seat hunt for cash and support at the Pa. Society in New York

Street, the former state party chair and a longtime attendee at Pennsylvania Society, held two fundraisers in Manhattan, fresh off his endorsement last week by former Gov. Ed Rendell.

Not spotted: State Rep. Chris Rabb, who is running as an anti-establishment progressive.

“That’s not really my thing,” he said in a text message.

Philadelphia City Council wrapped up its final meeting of the year the day before the Pennsylvania Society began, and the lawmakers gave the chatterati plenty to talk about in Manhattan, with a dramatic close to the session.

One major topic of conversation in New York: What did Council’s recent conflict with Mayor Cherelle L. Parker over her housing plan mean for the unusually tight relationship between Council President Kenyatta Johnson and the mayor?

» READ MORE: Philly Council votes against Mayor Parker’s vision for her signature housing plan, signaling a win for progressives

The consensus: Mom and Dad were fighting, but they’ll probably patch things up.

“Disagreements between Council and mayor — it happens,” said Larry Ceisler, a Philadelphia-based public affairs executive whose firm hosted a packed party in Midtown on Saturday. “It’s the way the system is set up.”

But Ceisler said he’s not worried that Parker and Johnson will abandon their goal of emulating then-Mayor Rendell’s close working relationship with Council President John F. Street in the 1990s.

“The fact is they’re certainly in sync more than they’re not,” Ceisler said.

» READ MORE: Mayor Cherelle Parker and Council President Kenyatta Johnson are trying to bring back the ’90s in City Hall

Johnson, he said, likely improved his standing with members by holding firm against a last-minute amendment Parker proposed to alter Council’s version of the housing plan’s budget.

Parker and Johnson both made the trek to Manhattan, along with Councilmembers Rue Landau, Nina Ahmad, Jamie Gauthier, Jeffery “Jay” Young Jr., Kendra Brooks, Katherine Gilmore Richardson, Jim Harrity, Cindy Bass, and Quetcy Lozada.

The mayor also took the opportunity to engage in a bit of bipartisanship. She has often touted her ability to build relationships across the aisle, despite Philadelphia politics being dominated by Democrats.

At the PMA luncheon, Parker embraced former Gov. Tom Corbett and gave a warm greeting to Auditor General Tim DeFoor, both Republicans.

At the same event, Republican U.S. Sen Dave McCormick shouted out Parker multiple times during his prepared remarks. The pair have forged a working relationship despite their partisan differences.

“We talk about challenges in the city that we’re facing right now, and the hope is that we can count on some folks as allies,” Parker said of meeting with members of the GOP.

» READ MORE: Mayor Parker’s restraint with Trump is both calculation and gamble as the president escalates against blue cities

She added: “It’s great to try to maintain those lines of communication.”

Many of the events were hosted by special-interest groups and corporations that have business with the government and are looking to win influence over glasses of Champagne.

There were the usual suspects and big law firms: Duane Morris always hosts a marquee late-night event on Friday in the sprawling Rainbow Room atop Rockefeller Center. Other firms including Cozen O’Connor, Ballard Spahr, and Saul Ewing also hosted cocktail parties.

» READ MORE: Top Pennsylvania Republicans are projecting relative calm amid 2026 national party panic

One notable newcomer to the party scene was Pace-O-Matic, the Georgia-based operator of “skill games” at the center of negotiations over regulation and taxing of the machines.

The company, which has spent millions on political contributions and lobbying, threw a cocktail reception Thursday night at an Italian restaurant attended by a sizable contingent of state lawmakers.

Legislators have yet to agree on how to regulate and tax skill games, which remain entirely unregulated and untaxed.

But solutions seemed possible at the Pace-O-Matic party, as Central Pennsylvania Republicans and Philadelphia Democrats milled about the bar in an unlikely alliance.

Another bipartisan event — this one in a sunny room atop the vintage Kimberly Hotel — was hosted by Independence Blue Cross and AmeriHealth Caritas, insurance companies that have Medicaid contracts with the state.

Lawmakers often credit the weekend of partying in New York as a time for civil conversations in a neutral territory that ultimately benefit a philanthropic cause at the Pennsylvania Society’s annual dinner.

But Rabbi Michael Pollack, who leads the government accountability group March on Harrisburg, said the civility seems to come only when special interests are footing the bill.

“It’s absolutely embarrassing that our legislators can only interact with each other when a lobbyist sets up a playdate for them,” he said.

Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward debuted a hidden musical talent on stage at the annual bipartisan Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry breakfast: She can write a Harrisburg holiday hit.

“I did live in Nashville for six years and no one discovered me,” she joked, before launching into a three-minute budget balladto the tune of “Deck the Halls.”

Ward (R., Westmoreland) debuted her song after an ugly budget battle that lasted 135 days and ended just last month. Punctuated by fa-la-las, she called out each of the top leaders who were in the closed-door budget talks.

Ward is among Shapiro’s top critics. The two had hardly spoken since 2023 until Ward joined in-person budget negotiations at the end of October.

» READ MORE: Gov. Josh Shapiro says national Democrats folded in the federal shutdown, while he stayed ‘at the table’ for Pa.’s late budget deal

During those negotiations, Ward has said Shapiro gave her a special heart-shaped cookie to break the ice. And it appears that she’s not yet letting that go, dedicating a moment in her song to the encounter:

Mr. Shapiro give me a break

You know you gave me that heart cookie cake

Why are you saying that you didn’t do it?

Ward’s jingle wasn’t the first time a Pennsylvania Republican leader leaned on the power of song during the bitter budget battle.

At the peak of the clash over transit funding in August, Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman quoted heavily from the lyrics of John Mellencamp’s “Small Town” in recalling his upbringing in rural Western Pennsylvania.

Shapiro will propose a new budget in February, restarting the budget negotiation process. Ward urged the group of leaders to take a break from fighting during the holiday season.

It’s Christmas and we’re all here together

Republicans and Democrats, and all who matter

Let’s celebrate the birth of Jesus

For the next three weeks, let’s not be egregious

Perhaps next budget season will inspire a mixtape.