Governor Shapiro and Clean Energy Down-Ballot Democrats Won Big on Election Day

To: Interested Parties
From: Evergreen Action Northeast & Mid-Atlantic Regional Director Catherine Zingg
Date: Thursday November 5, 2026
Re: Governor Shapiro and Clean Energy Down-Ballot Democrats Won Big on Election Day

On Election Day Pennsylvania voters were presented with two visions for the future of the state’s energy grid. They loudly rejected Stacy Garrity’s plan to take the commonwealth backwards by rolling back clean energy projects and environmental protections. Instead, voters delivered a decisive victory to Governor Josh Shapiro and his plan to lower costs and get more power on the grid quickly by building new, cheap, clean energy.

Pennsylvania families are already feeling the strain of rising energy prices, and their bills are set to climb even higher when the calendar flips to December. Energy costs became a central issue in the closing weeks of the campaign, and that pressure drove Pennsylvania voters to not only send Governor Shapiro back to Harrisburg, but to send Democratic majorities to the state House and Senate as well, clinching a blue trifecta for the first time since 1993. After years of critical clean energy bills stalling in the Senate, voters are demanding action from the newly-elected legislature. They want real savings for the thousands of families across the state struggling to make ends meet.

Here is what the Governor and new Democratic leadership in the legislature should pursue in 2027.

Executive Action: What Governor Shapiro Can Do Right Now

Governor Shapiro surged to victory on Election Day, and he does not need to wait for new legislators to arrive in January to act. Polls in the closing days of the campaign showed a majority of voters trusted the governor to lower costs and manage data centers responsibly. Here are two actions he can take right now to start delivering for Pennsylvania families:

• Set clear standards to protect families from data center costs: Build on Pennsylvania’s existing framework to set clear standards so data centers cover their own costs, and build the grid in a way that benefits all Pennsylvanians, not just large corporations.
• Strengthen PJM accountability and utility oversight: Use the governor’s seat at the table in PJM, the regional grid operator, to fight for faster connections of new power and a closer scrutiny of transmission spending and utility profits, with a focus on how data center growth is impacting customers’ bills.

Legislative Action: Where Legislators Should Start in 2027

A new Democratic trifecta presents real opportunity to send critical legislation for the governor’s signature. For years, bills to bring more cheap, clean energy onto the grid and protect ratepayers from data center costs passed the House and stalled in the Senate. Now it’s on the new majority to deliver savings. Here are four bills legislators should take up in January:

• Pass data center protections into law: Build on Pennsylvania’s existing framework, and existing legislative proposals to write clear requirements into law: data centers pay for the costs they create, bring more clean energy supply, and plan their infrastructure transparently.
• Modernize clean energy siting: Set clearer standards so solar, wind, and battery storage can be built responsibly and faster.
• Expand battery storage: Clear the way for more batteries that keep the grid reliable and costs down with legislation that clarifies eligibility and streamlines connections to the grid.
• Strengthen PJM accountability and utility oversight: Scrutinize utility profits and transmission spending, and strengthen the Commonwealth’s role in regional grid planning by giving Pennsylvania a stronger voice at PJM so the costs of data center growth, and new transmission don’t land on ordinary customers.

The Work Starts Now

The 2026 election in Pennsylvania was a referendum on inaction. State government ground to a halt in the State Senate, and voters went to the polls wanting tangible results over political point-scoring. Now, with Democratic majorities in both chambers and the governor’s office, it is time for Governor Shapiro and legislative leaders to tackle the affordability and climate crises by building new, clean energy that brings more power to the grid and lowers prices for ratepayers.

For more information or to speak with a policy expert, please contact Evergreen Action Northeast & Mid-Atlantic Press Secretary Miles Cunning at miles@evergreenaction.com

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