Republican Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Stacy Garrity recently sparked outrage on social media after failing to respond to her opponent Josh Shapiro’s claims that she was an election denier during a recent debate. The debate took place at WHTM Studios in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and lasted one hour.
At some point during the debate, Shapiro was asked whether he opposed or supported voter ID requirements. He said that he was not necessarily against the idea, but that it had to be based on facts, not conspiracy theories. He then went on to accuse Garrity of being an election denier, recalling when he was the Attorney General in 2020, during the election that made Joe Biden president.
According to Shapiro, Donald Trump and “his enablers, including my opponent,” sued the state 43 different times to try to throw out the votes of Pennsylvanians. He then said: “The next Gov will certify the 2028 presidential election. I’ll certify whoever the people choose. I don’t know that we can say the same about my opponent.”
Garrity called that “the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” but failed to say whether she would certify the votes or not.
Internet Reacts to Shapiro’s Attacking Garrity
People who watched the clip on social media commented on the issue, most of them outraged by Garrity’s inability to answer. One of them wrote: “She was so aghast that he called her out that she had zero retort cause she knew it was true.”
The critics had harsh words for Garrity: “None of these grifters ever have facts. (…) It’s all lies and conspiracies. Treasonous trash.” Others said: “Republicans aren’t bringing their A-team to the midterms. Trump’s plan to steal the election better be pretty good because if this is all they’ve got, they’re in trouble.”
Some users even cracked jokes at Garrity’s expense due to her seemingly flustered answer: “She was so shocked by being called out that she combined ‘how do you sleep at night’ with ‘how do you look yourself in the mirror.’”
Another person gave a lengthy answer about how important it was to certify the votes after the election: “For me, this is bigger than Shapiro vs. Garrity or Democrat vs. Republican. Election certification should be about the voters’ legally determined result, not about personal loyalty to a candidate or party. People can disagree on policies all day, but confidence in the election process is something worth taking seriously.”
It remains to be seen whether the episode will affect Garrity’s popularity, as she is currently trailing Shapiro in the Pennsylvania elections.
