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State Representative, 48th District

Vote for
1
Term
2 years
Candidates
2
Election
Nov 3, 2026

What this office does: A state representative votes on Pennsylvania laws and the state budget in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

Entirely in Washington County: the City of Washington; East Washington, Donora and Green Hills boroughs; Amwell, East Finley, Fallowfield, Morris, North Franklin, Nottingham, Somerset, South Franklin, South Strabane and West Finley townships; and parts of Carroll and North Strabane townships.

CandidatesCompare by issue

Taxes & budget

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    No documented position found.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    • Opposed Gov. Shapiro's 2026-27 budget proposal, saying it relied on new taxes and accounting tricks.In office
    • Supported the final 2026-27 budget, citing lower spending than proposed and no new taxes.In office

Public safety

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    No documented position found.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    • Proposes requiring PennDOT to verify monthly with DHS the immigration status of non-citizen license holders.In office

Education

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    • Calls for faster progress on adequacy-based state school funding, saying small and rural districts are still waiting.
    • Opposes cuts to Head Start and early childhood education programs.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    • Supported the 2025-26 budget's $50 million in added financial assistance for students in struggling schools.In office

Economy & jobs

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    • Supports raising the $7.25 minimum wage along with state reimbursement rates for home care agencies.
    • Calls for recruiting renewable, battery and geothermal industries to build alongside existing energy employers.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    • Calls for permitting reform and embracing natural gas as an affordable, reliable energy source.In office

Roads & infrastructure

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    No documented position found.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    • Supports the 2026-27 budget's $775 million for shovel-ready rural road and bridge projects.In office
    • Opposed House Democrats' 2025 transit funding bill and co-sponsored a plan to have a private operator run SEPTA buses.In office

Environment & parks

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    • Supports letting communities reject or delay developments such as data centers over health or well-being concerns.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    • Supported the 2025-26 budget's withdrawal of Pennsylvania from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI).In office

Health & human services

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    • Warns that federal Medicaid cuts will affect over 300,000 Pennsylvanians and strain hospitals and providers.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    No documented position found.

Government & transparency

  • Rebecca MacTaggartDemocratic

    • Supports HB 2728, which would bar corporations from election spending, and wants it to cover out-of-state firms.
    • Calls for raising the $500-a-day cap on zoning-violation fines under the Municipalities Planning Code.

  • Tim O'NealRepublican

    No documented position found.

Challengers are listed first and incumbents last; otherwise candidates appear in ballot order. The Gist does not rank, rate or endorse candidates. Only positions backed by a cited source are shown; 8 issues covered in this race.