ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin on Monday endorsed a former Philadelphia-based federal prosecutor as she campaigns for Pennsylvania's top law enforcement officer.
Kat Copeland announced this month she'll run for attorney general in 2024, joining an increasingly crowded field of political hopefuls.
But Martin, Pennsylvania's longest-tenured district attorney, said Copeland's decades as a prosecutor sets her apart in his eyes.
"I think she would be an outstanding attorney general."Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin
"I know her qualifications, and she stands above and beyond, in my opinion, of the other candidates in the field," Martin said, standing beside Copeland outside the Historic Lehigh County Courthouse.
"I think she would be an outstanding attorney general."
Copeland, a Republican, joined the Delaware County District Attorney's office as an assistant district attorney in the early 1990s before becoming a federal prosecutor in 2011.
In 2018, she was appointed Delaware County district attorney but lost re-election in 2020.
After her defeat, she returned to the federal level and was named chief of the criminal division of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
If elected, Copeland said, she would turn her attention to prosecuting gun crimes in Philadelphia, addressing the opioid epidemic and cracking down on con artists targeting seniors.
A wide-open race
Over her 31 years as a prosecutor, Copeland said, she's built relationships with district attorneys across Pennsylvania and is prepared to help support them as they seek justice for victims, she said.
"I have both the experience, the temperament and the know-how of how to get that job done. I will make sure the office does what it is built and intended to do. I will make sure that office isn't being partisan."Philadelphia-based federal prosecutor Kat Copeland
"I have both the experience, the temperament and the know-how of how to get that job done," Copeland said. "I will make sure the office does what it is built and intended to do. I will make sure that office isn't being partisan."
The 2024 race for attorney general is wide open. Democrat Josh Shapiro resigned as attorney general in days before being sworn in as governor. While appointee Michelle Henry is not running to retain the job, a slew of others have entered the ring.
On the Republican side, York County District Attorney David Sunday has received endorsements from state Treasurer Stacy Garrity and the Republican Attorneys General Association.
State Rep. Craig Williams, R-Delaware, has discussed his intention to run.
Meanwhile, the Democratic field features former Auditor General Eugene DePasquale; state Rep. Jared Solomon, D-Philadelphia; former federal prosecutor Joe Kahn and Keir Bradford-Grey, the former chief public defender Keir Bradford-Grey.
The attorney general serves as the top law enforcement officer of Pennsylvania, overseeing all state level prosecutions and representing the commonwealth when it is named in lawsuits.
The office has served as a springboard for higher office of late. Both Shapiro and Republican Tom Corbett were elected governor while serving as attorney general.
