The president pro tempore of the Pennsylvania Senate (commonly known as the "president pro-tem") is a constitutionally-created office in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The current president pro tempore is Republican Kim Ward.

Overview The position of president pro tempore replaced the abolished position of speaker of the Senate in the Constitution of 1874.

The office is filled through election by the full Senate membership, though its holder typically comes from the majority party. The president pro tempore is designated as second in the gubernatorial succession, behind the lieutenant governor.

Duties The president pro tempore presides over the Senate in the absence of the lieutenant governor and appoints committee chairs, votes on all bills, and is the leader of the Senate. In issues involving both chambers of the General Assembly, the president pro tempore confers with the speaker of the House.

List of speakers of the Pennsylvania Senate Name Party County Term Samuel Powel Federalist Delaware, Philadelphia 1792–1793 Anthony Morris Federalist Philadelphia 1793–1794 William Bingham Federalist Delaware, Philadelphia 1794–1795 Robert Hare Sr. Federalist Delaware, Philadelphia 1795–1799 John Woods Federalist Allegheny, Washington 1799–1801 Samuel Maclay Democratic-Republican Northumberland 1801–1802 John Pearson Democratic-Republican Lancaster 1802–1803 Robert Whitehill Democratic-Republican Cumberland 1803–1805 James Young Brady Constitutionalist Armstrong, Indiana, Jefferson, Westmoreland 1805–1806 John Francis Steele Democratic-Republican Lancaster 1805–1806 Presely Carr Lane Sr. Democratic-Republican Fayette, Greene, Westmoreland 1806–1814 Walter Lowrie Democratic-Republican Allegheny, Beaver, Butler 1813–1814 John Tod Democratic-Republican Bedford, Cambria, Somerset 1814–1816 Isaac Weaver Jr. Democratic-Republican Greene, Washington 1817–1820 William Marks Democratic Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler 1820–1825 Philip S. Markley Democratic Montgomery 1821–1822 Thomas Burnside Sr. Democratic Centre, Clearfield, McKean, Potter, Tioga 1825–1826 Alexander Mahon Sr. Democratic Cumberland, Perry 1825–1828 William George Hawkins Sr. Democratic Fayette, Greene, Washington 1831–1832 Thomas Ringland Democratic Greene, Washington 1833–1834 Jesse Reading Burden Democratic Philadelphia 1833–1834 Thomas Scott Cunningham Democratic Crawford, Erie, Mercer 1835–1836 Jesse Reading Burden Whig Philadelphia 1837–1838 Charles Bingham Penrose Whig Adams, Cumberland, Franklin, Perry, Philadelphia 1838–1839 William Tennet Rogers Democratic Bucks 1839 Ebeneezer Kingsbury Jr. Democratic Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Wayne 1841 John Strohm Anti-Masonic Lancaster, York 1841 Charles Bingham Penrose Whig Adams, Cumberland, Franklin, Perry, Philadelphia 1841 John Hoge Ewing Whig Washington 1842 William Hiester Whig Lancaster, York 1842 Benjamin Crispin Democratic Philadelphia 1843 William Bigler Democratic Armstrong, Camrbia, Clarion, Clearfield, Indiana 1844–1845 John B. Sterigere Democratic Chester, Delaware, Montgomery 1845 William Pendleton Wilcox Democratic Jefferson, McKean, Potter, Tioga, Venango, Warren 1845 Daniel Lee Sherwood Jr. Democratic Tioga, Bradford 1846 Charles L. Gibbons Sr. Whig Philadelphia 1847 William Sterling Ross Improvement Democrat Columbia, Luzerne 1847 William Williamson Jr. Whig Chester, Delaware 1847 William F. Johnston Whig Chester, Cambria, Clearfield, Indiana 1848 George Darsie Whig Allegheny, Butler 1848–1849 Valentine Best Democratic Columbia, Luzerne 1849 Benjamin Matthias Whig Philadelphia 1851 Christan Myers Whig Armstrong, Clarion, Indiana 1852 John Hoge Walker Whig Crawford, Erie 1852 Thomas Erskin Carson Whig Adams, Franklin 1853 John Christian Kunkel Whig Dauphin, Northumberland 1853 Byron Delano Hamlin Democratic Clearfield, Elk, Forest, McKean, Potter, Tioga 1855 William Muhlenberg Hiester Democratic Berks 1855 William McKinney Piatt Democratic Bradford, Susquehanna, Wyoming 1855–1856 Nathaniel Borrodaille Browne Democratic Philadelphia 1856 Darwin A. Finney Whig Crawford, Erie 1857 David Taggart Whig Dauphin, Northumberland 1857 John M. Cresswell Jr. Democratic Blair, Cambria, Clearfield, Huntingdon 1858 William Henry Welsh Democratic York 1858 Jacob Turney Democratic Fayette, Westmoreland 1859 William Miller Francis Republican Lawrence, Mercer, Venango 1860 Robert Moffett Palmer Republican Schuylkill 1860–1861 Louis Williams Hall Sr. Republican Blair, Cambria, Centre, Clearfield, Huntingdon, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry 1861–1862 George van Eman Lawrence Republican Beaver, Greene, Washington 1863 John P. Penny Sr. Republican Allegheny 1863–1864 Louis Williams Hall Sr. Republican Blair, Cambria, Centre, Clearfield, Huntingdon, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry 1864 William J. Turrell Republican Bradford, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Wyoming 1865 David Fleming Republican Dauphin, Lebanon 1866 Louis Williams Hall Sr. Republican Blair, Cambria, Centre, Clearfield, Huntingdon, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry 1866–1867 James Leonard Graham Republican Allegheny 1868 Wilmer Worthington Republican Chester, Delaware, Montgomery 1869 Charles Henderson Stinson Republican Chester, Delaware, Montgomery 1869–1870 Albert Gallatin Brodhead Democratic Carbon, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Wayne 1871 William A. Wallace Democratic Blair, Cambria, Cameron, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk 1871 James Smith Rutan Republican Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington 1872 George Holmes Anderson Republican Allegheny 1873 George H. Cutler Republican Erie, Warren 1874 Butler B. Strang Republican Cameron, McKean, Potter, Tioga 1874 Henry Lloyd White Republican Armstorong, Cambria, Indiana, Jefferson, Westmoreland 1874 Elisha W. Davis Republican Philadelphia 1875–1876

List of presidents pro tempore of the Pennsylvania Senate Name Party County Elected George H. Cutler Republican Erie 1875 Elisha W. Davis Republican Philadelphia 1875,76 John Christopher Newmyer Republican Allegheny 1876,77 Thomas Valentine Cooper Republican Delaware 1877,78 Andrew Jackson Herr Republican Dauphin 1878,79 John Lamon Republican Philadelphia 1879 William Imlay Newell Republican Philadelphia 1881 Hugh McNeil Republican Allegheny 1881 John E. Reyburn Republican Philadelphia 1883 Amos Herr Mylin Republican Lancaster 1883,85 George Handy Smith Republican Philadelphia 1885,87 John C. Grady Republican Philadelphia 1887,89 Boies Penrose Republican Philadelphia 1889,91 John P. S. Gobin Republican Lebanon 1891,93 Charles W. Thomas Republican Philadelphia 1893,95 Samuel John Milton McCarrell Republican Dauphin 1895,97 Daniel Spindler Walton Republican Greene 1897 William Preston Snyder Republican Chester 1899, 1901 John Morin Scott Republican Philadelphia 1901,03 William Cameron Sproul Republican Delaware 1903,05 Cyrus Woods Republican Westmoreland 1905,07 Albert Everton Sisson Republican Erie 1907,09 William E. Crow Republican Fayette 1911 George M. Wertz Republican Cambria 1911 Daniel P. Gerberich Republican Lebanon 1913 Charles H. Kline Republican Allegheny 1913,15 Edward E. Beidleman Republican Dauphin 1915,17 Clarence Jay Buckman Republican Bucks 1917,19 Frank E. Baldwin Republican Potter 1919,21 Thomas Lawrence Eyre Republican Chester 1921,23 John G. Homsher Republican Lancaster 1923,25 Samuel W. Salus Republican Philadelphia 1923,25 Horace W. Schantz Republican Lehigh 1927,29 Augustus F. Daix Jr. Republican Philadelphia 1929,31 James S. Boyd Republican Montgomery 1931,33 Harry B. Scott Republican Centre 1933 John G. Homsher Republican Lancaster 1935 Harvey D. Huffman Democratic Monroe 1937 John S. Rice Democratic Adams 1938 Frederick T. Gelder Republican Susquehanna 1939 Charles H. Ealy Republican Somerset 1941,43 M. Harvey Taylor Republican Dauphin 1945,47,49,51,53,55,57,59 Weldon Brinton Heyburn Republican Delaware 1947 Anthony J. DiSilvestro Democratic Philadelphia 1961 M. Harvey Taylor Republican Dauphin 1963 James S. Berger Republican Potter 1964 (acting), 1965 Stanley Stroup Republican Bedford 1966 (acting) Robert D. Fleming Republican Allegheny 1967,69,70 Martin L. Murray Democratic Luzerne 1971,72,73,74,75,76,77,78,79,80 Henry G. Hager Republican Lycoming 1981,82,83,84 Robert Jubelirer Republican Blair 1984,85,86,87,88,89,90,91,92 Bob Mellow Democratic Lackawanna 1992,93,94 Robert Jubelirer Republican Blair 1994,95,96,97,97,99; 2000,01,02,03,04,05,06 Joe Scarnati Republican Jefferson 2006,07,08,09,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19 Jake Corman Republican Centre 2020,21 Kim Ward Republican Westmoreland 2022,23,24,25,26

See also Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania President of the Pennsylvania Senate List of Pennsylvania state legislatures

Notes

References

External links Pennsylvania Senate website