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State Representative, 97th 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.

Lancaster County: Conestoga, East Lampeter, Pequea and West Lampeter townships; part of Manheim Township (districts 2, 6, 12 and 13); and part of Manor Township (Hershey Mill, Indiantown, Leisure, Manor, New, New East and Washington Boro districts).

CandidatesCompare by issue

Taxes & budget

  • Jess BranasDemocratic

    • Supports starting the budget earlier and freezing legislators' pay when the budget is late.

  • Steve MentzerRepublican

    • Calls for budgets based on actual spending data, with more accountability and transparency.
    • Voted for the 2026-27 state budget, saying it protects taxpayers and preserves the Rainy Day Fund.In office

Education

Housing

  • Jess BranasDemocratic

    • Calls for more housing funding, tenant protections and raising the eviction ceiling.

  • Steve MentzerRepublican

    No documented position found.

Economy & jobs

  • Jess BranasDemocratic

    • Supports raising Pennsylvania's minimum wage.
    • Proposes eliminating flat customer charges ("junk fees") on utility bills.

  • Steve MentzerRepublican

    • Supports tax holidays on consumer goods; says he voted to end an energy tax and pass savings to utility customers.

Environment & parks

  • Jess BranasDemocratic

    • Opposes data centers in Pennsylvania and calls for state rules on their energy and water use and reporting.

  • Steve MentzerRepublican

    • Supports letting municipalities pause data centers and ending data centers' sales tax exemption.

Health & human services

  • Jess BranasDemocratic

    • Supports affordable health care, with medical decisions left to patients and their doctors.

  • Steve MentzerRepublican

    • Proposes stronger state oversight of Area Agencies on Aging and elder abuse investigations.In office

Government & transparency

  • Jess BranasDemocratic

    • Calls for more help at the polls for seniors.

  • Steve MentzerRepublican

    • Supports voter ID and updating voter rolls to ensure only eligible people vote.
    • Proposes capping public officials' annual cost-of-living raise at the Social Security increase.In office

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; 7 issues covered in this race.