Jake Corman

Corman is a graduate of Bellefonte Area High School, the Pennsylvania College of Technology where he earned an associate degree in Communications and The Pennsylvania State University where he received a BA degree in Journalism.

He was State Director for Central Pennsylvania for United States Senator Rick Santorum from 1994 through 1998.[1] He was Field Service Director for the Pennsylvania Builders Association from 1993 through 1994.[1]

In 1998, Corman's father, Doyle Corman, a Pennsylvania State Senator for 21 years, announced his retirement from the Senate. Corman announced that he would run for his father's seat. During the three-way GOP primary, Corman was attacked by the other candidates for a 1995 drunk driving conviction, as well as his admission to experimenting with marijuana in the 1980s.[2] Despite the minor controversy, Corman prevailed and went on to defeat Democrat Scott Conklin (now a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives) in the general election.

In 2002, Corman was re-elected with over 92% of the vote, facing only minimal opposition from a Libertarian Party candidate.[3] In 2006, Corman defeated Democrat Jon Eich, Robert J. Cash, and Libertarian Thomas Martin with 56% of the vote.[4] After the leadership shakeup following the 2006 elections, Corman bid for the position of Senate Majority Leader, but was edged out by Dominic Pileggi [5] and was ultimately elected as the Majority Policy Chairman, succeeding Joe Scarnati. After the 2008 election, Corman became Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The Pennsylvania Report named him to the 2009 "The Pennsylvania Report 100" list of influential figures in Pennsylvania politics and called him of the state's "rising stars."[6]

In 2010, Corman again defeated Democrat Jon Eich for re-election garnering 69.4% of the vote.[7] In 2014 and 2016, Corman was unopposed for re-election.[8] In 2018, he again won re-election after defeating Democrat Ezra Nanes by more than 10,500 votes.[9] After the 2014 election, Corman became Senate Majority Leader.[10]

In 2017, Corman sponsored Senate Bill 1, a pension reform legislation that was enacted.[14]

Corman, as well as former Pennsylvania Treasurer Rob McCord, sued the NCAA, seeking to reverse sanctions that the athletic association imposed against Penn State after the Penn State child sex abuse scandal.[15] In a settlement, the NCAA lifted the sanctions against the university. The lawsuit initially aimed to require Penn State's $60 million fine to be spent on child abuse prevention in Pennsylvania, rather than across the U.S., but the suit later morphed to challenge the legality of the sanctions themselves.[15][16] Corman accused the NCAA of unfairly singling out Penn State[15][16] and said that the sanctions were "extremely damaging to my community";[16] the NCAA responded that Corman was seeking to politicize the NCAA's safety efforts.[15]

While Corman voted for Pennsylvania's medical cannabis program, he is against both the decriminalization and legalization of cannabis in Pennsylvania. He believes cannabis is a gateway drug.[17][18] He stated that: "I will do everything in my power to prevent legalization of recreational marijuana."[19]

In 2018, Corman that a bill Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing Law (Senate Bill 1090), which was signed into law later that year as Act 80. The anti-hazing law, which passed the state Senate unanimously, strengthened anti-hazing laws.[20]

As part of the 2018–19 budget process, Corman identified school safety funding as a priority.[21]

In June 2019, Corman made national headlines for aggressively yelling over Democratic State Senator Katie Muth, as she read into record a letter from formerly homeless resident John Boyd, who encouraged representatives to not take away monthly General Assistance funds from him and other vulnerable citizens.[22]

In January 2021, Corman and other Republicans in the Pennsylvania Senate refused to seat a Democratic senator who won a close election when his opponent refused to concede. The Democratic senator's election victory had been certified by state officials. Forman then led the unconstitutional removal of Lt. Governor Fetterman as President of the Pennsylvania Senate, using the GOP majority to install himself as President pro tempore.[23]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jake Corman.

• Pennsylvania Senate: Jake Corman

• Profile at Vote Smart