Val DiGiorgio, chairman of Pennsylvania's Republican Party, is stepping down after he exchanged sexually charged text messages with a Philadelphia city council candidate. | Ed Hille/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP Elections Chaos erupts in Pennsylvania Republican Party after racy texts scandal The party chairman resigns, and a potentially brutal battle could begin to replace him in a state critical to Donald Trump's reelection.

The embattled leader of the Pennsylvania GOP has resigned amid a #MeToo scandal, throwing the party into further upheaval in a state critical to President Donald Trump's reelection chances.

The news of Val DiGiorgio's departure follows months of party infighting and disastrous midterm election results for Republicans in the state, including the loss of three congressional seats and double-digit collapses in the gubernatorial and Senate races.


Republicans are rushing to contain the chaos, and some in the party urged DiGiorgio to step down earlier to lessen the bleeding, according to sources familiar with the matter. Former Rep. Lou Barletta, a close ally of Trump’s, told POLITICO that he has been asked by his backers to take the reins at the state committee.

"Although I have not campaigned for it, I have received calls from supporters to consider it,” he said. “Whoever the next chair is, they need to focus on getting President Trump re-elected, growing the majority in the state legislature and re-electing incumbents in Congress. I will continue to help the president and the party any way I can."

Some Republicans said Barletta has the inside track.

“I'm hearing it is Barletta's if he wants it, he holds a special place in Trump's political orbit,” said former Rep. Ryan Costello (R-Pa.). However, there are also "a few talented county chairs that are being talked about, too."

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Bob Asher, a top fundraiser and member of the Republican National Committee, is said to support Bernadette “Bernie” Comfort, the current vice chair of the state party.

Other candidates being talked about as potential replacements to DiGiorgio, according to Pennsylvania GOP political insiders, include Ted Christian, former state director for the Trump's 2016 campaign in Pennsylvania; Lawrence Tabas, ex-state GOP general counsel; Andy Reilly, chairman of the Southeast Pennsylvania caucus of the state GOP; and Elizabeth Preate Havey, leader of the Montgomery County Republican Party. Christian, Reilly, Havey, Tabas and Comfort did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The last race for party chair in 2017 was extremely close — DiGiorgio won by only two votes — and geographical and ideological divisions remain in the state GOP that could lead to another competitive, and perhaps bruising, battle.

Comfort will immediately become the acting chair of the Pennsylvania GOP under state party rules, and she has 10 days to schedule a time and place for party members to pick a new leader.

The Philadelphia Inquirer first reported Tuesday that DiGiorgio exchanged sexually charged text messages with a Philadelphia city council candidate and sent her a picture of genitals. He said it was council hopeful Irina Goldstein's "duty to the party" to send photos to him and promised her to "get you to [the] White House at some point," according to the messages reviewed by the newspaper.

DiGiorgio's lawyer, Joel Frank, said the messages were “mutual private exchanges between adults” and labeled Goldstein’s allegations “a mischaracterization, incomplete and defamatory.”

In a statement announcing his resignation, DiGiorgio said, “Any communications between Ms. Goldstein and me were entirely consensual. Any attempt to characterize any communication exchanges between Ms. Goldstein and myself as harassment or abuse of power is fundamentally untrue.”