State

State Senator, 18th District

Vote for: 1
Term: 4 years
Candidates: 2
Election: Nov 3, 2026

What this office does: A state senator votes on Pennsylvania laws and the state budget and confirms many of the Governor's appointments.

27 of Northampton County's 38 municipalities, including the cities of Bethlehem and Easton, the Slate Belt, the Nazareth area and the Saucon Valley — every municipality except Allen, Bushkill, East Allen, Hanover, Lehigh and Moore townships and Bath, Chapman, North Catasauqua, Northampton and Walnutport boroughs (State Senate 14). Also includes the Lehigh County part of Bethlehem.

Candidates Compare by issue

Scott Janney

Republican

Charitable fundraiser (director of gift planning, The Salvation Army Eastern Territory)

The gist

Supports voter ID and moving away from unrestricted mail-in voting toward defined absentee ballots.
Calls for no new state spending beyond current revenue and lower taxes.
Supports faster permits for drilling and new pipelines, and opposes regional energy mandates.
Supports state laws requiring data centers to use closed-system cooling and supply their own power.
Supports school choice across public, private and hybrid options.
Supports enforcing immigration laws and backing law enforcement with training and resources.
Supports the right of law-abiding citizens to own guns for self-protection.
Pledges to serve no more than two terms in the state Senate.

More about Scott

View sources (3)

Supports voter ID and moving away from unrestricted mail-in voting toward defined absentee ballots.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Elections question · onyourballot.vote411.org
“Pennsylvania can strengthen confidence in our elections through transparency, voter ID, and consistent standards.”
Scott Janney | Issues
Campaign website · Vote for Scott Janney · Election Integrity · scottjanney.com
“We need to get back to a more secure and clearly defined system of absentee ballots and move away from unrestricted mail-in voting.”
Calls for no new state spending beyond current revenue and lower taxes.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Budget process question · onyourballot.vote411.org
“Governor Shapiro and legislators must agree to no new spending beyond current revenue.”
Scott Janney | Issues
Campaign website · Vote for Scott Janney · Lower Taxes · scottjanney.com
“Pennsylvanians deserve to keep more of what they earn.”
Supports faster permits for drilling and new pipelines, and opposes regional energy mandates.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Most pressing issues · onyourballot.vote411.org
“Fight for pro-production policies that streamline permits for responsible drilling, invest in pipelines and grids that keep power affordable, and block regional mandates”
Supports state laws requiring data centers to use closed-system cooling and supply their own power.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Data centers question · onyourballot.vote411.org
“require data centers to use closed-system cooling and provide their own electricity that gives to the grid”
Supports school choice across public, private and hybrid options.
Scott Janney | Issues
Campaign website · Vote for Scott Janney · Education · scottjanney.com
“expand access to quality education through public, private, and hybrid options so families can choose what works best”
Supports enforcing immigration laws and backing law enforcement with training and resources.
Scott Janney | Issues
Campaign website · Vote for Scott Janney · Fair, Regulated Immigration … Law Enforcement · scottjanney.com
“Enforcing immigration laws protects jobs and strengthens communities. … Officers deserve proper training, adequate resources, and public support.”
Supports the right of law-abiding citizens to own guns for self-protection.
Scott Janney | Issues
Campaign website · Vote for Scott Janney · Your Right to Self-Protection · scottjanney.com
“Law-abiding citizens have the right to protect themselves and their families.”
Pledges to serve no more than two terms in the state Senate.
Scott Janney | About
Campaign website · Vote for Scott Janney · scottjanney.com
“He has no intention of serving more than two terms in the Pennsylvania Senate.”

Lisa Boscola

DemocraticIncumbent

State senator · Bethlehem Township

The gist

Proposed data center bills making data centers pay their own infrastructure costs.
Proposes shrinking the legislature to 101 House and 38 Senate seats.
Introduced legislation to move Pennsylvania to a two-year state budget cycle.
Proposed suspending the state gas tax for 60 days and a back-to-school sales tax holiday.
Supports eliminating local school property taxes.
Supports letting independents vote in primaries, ballot initiatives and updating mail-in voting rules.
Proposes banning misuse of license plate readers and other surveillance systems for personal purposes.In office
Proposes requiring labels when PFAS chemicals are intentionally added to consumer products.In office

In office = from the candidate's own official statements or legislation as an officeholder, not their campaign.

More about Lisa

View sources (5)

Proposed data center bills making data centers pay their own infrastructure costs.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Data centers question · onyourballot.vote411.org
“require data centers to cover the full cost of the infrastructure they need without passing along those costs to residential & small businesses customers”
Boscola Applauds Gov. Shapiro's Executive Order, Urges Permanent Data Center Protections
Public statement · Office of Sen. Lisa Boscola · Aug 18, 2026 · senatorboscola.com
“Data centers must pay the costs they create, utilities must not shift those costs onto existing customers”
Proposes shrinking the legislature to 101 House and 38 Senate seats.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Budget process question · onyourballot.vote411.org
“My plan proposes cutting the House to 101 & the Senate 38”
Introduced legislation to move Pennsylvania to a two-year state budget cycle.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Budget process question · onyourballot.vote411.org
“I introduced legislation to require a Two-Year State Budget Cycle.”
Proposed suspending the state gas tax for 60 days and a back-to-school sales tax holiday.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Most pressing issues … Most pressing issues · onyourballot.vote411.org
“I proposed suspending the gas tax for 60 days to help working families with current surge in price. … I have also proposed a “back to school” supplies sales tax holiday”
Supports eliminating local school property taxes.
Accomplishments | Lisa Boscola for State Senate
Campaign website · Friends of Lisa Boscola · Property Tax Reform · lisaboscola.com
“Senator Boscola has been a leading proponent of the total elimination of the local school property tax”
Supports letting independents vote in primaries, ballot initiatives and updating mail-in voting rules.
VOTE411 Voter Guide: Pennsylvania State Senator District 18
Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (VOTE411) · Elections question · onyourballot.vote411.org
“pushing to allow Independents to vote in our taxpayer funded primaries, give Pennsylvanians a direct voice through ballot initiatives, and update the mail-in voting law”
Proposes banning misuse of license plate readers and other surveillance systems for personal purposes.
Co-Sponsorship Memo: Protecting Pennsylvanians from the Misuse of Automated Surveillance Systems
Government record · Pennsylvania State Senate · Aug 27, 2026 · palegis.us
“ban knowingly accessing or using an automated surveillance system, or information obtained through such a system, for an unauthorized personal or otherwise unlawful purpose”
Proposes requiring labels when PFAS chemicals are intentionally added to consumer products.
Co-Sponsorship Memo: Requiring PFAS Disclosure in Consumer Products
Government record · Pennsylvania State Senate · Sep 14, 2026 · palegis.us
“requiring manufacturers to disclose when perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS, have been intentionally added to products or packaging”

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.