House Speaker Turzai to resign from Legislature effective Monday

Pennsylvania State House Speaker Mike Turzai, R-Bradford Woods, on Wednesday announced he will resign from the General Assembly effective Monday.

Turzai, an abortion opponent, strong proponent of state support for charter and religious schools and the state’s energy industry, did not say what the future holds for him beyond the statement that he will be taking a position in the private sector.

Published reports, quoting unnamed sources, have speculated for months that he will be taking a post with a major utility.

His resignation comes six months before the expiration of what he previously announced would be his final term. The announcement followed the outcome of a contested Republican primary in which unofficial returns showed Turzai’s endorsed candidate, Rob Mercuri, leading by a large margin in the suburban Pittsburgh district.

Although the state constitution gives the presiding officer of the chamber the authority to call a special election when there is a legislative vacancy, it was unclear Wednesday whether Turzai intends to set an early vote in the district many believe Democrats are targeting this fall.

According to the Associated Press, Turzai delivered a lengthy speech to the House on Wednesday afternoon, revisiting issues he has championed, including economic development, school choice and changes to the state liquor store system.

“The job, the position, is not mine,” Turzai said. “I’m a steward. I get to sit in a beautiful office and get to meet people from all walks of life. And, now, it will be somebody else’s turn. And that’s good.”

Turzai, 60, a lawyer, was elected to the House in 2001 and named speaker in 2015.

He made a brief bid for the party’s gubernatorial nomination in 2017 but dropped out of the race in early 2018.

Party leaders said Turzai, who has been a major party fundraiser, will be missed.

“Speaker Mike Turzai is a champion for Pennsylvania’s burgeoning energy sector, school choice and protecting the unborn. His leadership on these and many other issues will be missed. I thank Mike for his service to Pennsylvania and wish him and his family nothing but the best,” said U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley.

Gordon Denlinger, Pennsylvania director of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, said Turzai was a friend to the state’s small business sector.

“Speaker Turzai has worked with diligence to further the interests of small business owners and their employees throughout his years of public service, and for that, we express our deep and sincere gratitude. NFIB’s small-business owners frequently identify tax policies and regulatory burdens as key challenges, and Speaker Turzai has placed these concerns at the top of his legislative agenda,” Denlinger said.