Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano (R), who was at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, compared the riot that day “to historical events staged by the Nazis, saying that he saw ‘parallels’ between the criticism of the Jan. 6 attack and the 1933 Reichstag fire, which Hitler used to seize more power,” NBC News reports.

“Jenna Ellis, who was among the most high-profile attorneys involved in the Trump campaign’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, has joined Pennsylvania Republican Doug Mastriano’s gubernatorial campaign as a senior legal adviser,” Reuters reports.

“Democrats and allied groups are launching a $6 million digital, television and voter mobilization campaign attacking GOP Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano, betting that his pledges to completely ban abortion will turn off swing state voters,” Politico reports.

“The campaign is a massive sum for the starting gate of the most high-profiled gubernatorial races in the country. And it’s the latest indication that Democrats nationwide believe a potential Supreme Court decision overturning the landmark case Roe v. Wade will be a boon for turnout in November.”

“Two decades before he was Republican nominee for Pennsylvania governor, Doug Mastriano warned in a master’s thesis that the United States was vulnerable to a left-wing ‘Hitlerian Putsch’ that would begin with the dismantling of the U.S. military and end with the destruction of the country’s democracy,” the Washington Post reports.

Washington Post: “When Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano was declared the victor in Tuesday night’s Republican gubernatorial nominating contest, he gave the customary speech to mark the occasion. And in that speech, he made very clear that his general election approach would not be to tack to the political center.”

“What Mastriano promised in his first comments as the Republican nominee to lead Pennsylvania… was a phalanx of right-wing bugaboos. Traditionally, candidates who had fought off an intraparty challenge would turn their attention to the general election with a well-honed focus on what might appeal to the electorate broadly. But that tradition was broken by Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, one in which Trump ran hard to the right to win the nomination … and then ran hard to the right in the general in the hope of getting members of the apathetic right to show up at the polls.”

Cook Political Report: “Josh Shapiro has a significant campaign war chest and a proven record of electoral crossover appeal, but a stronger GOP candidate might have blunted that crossover appeal. The national environment matters less in governors’ races, but candidate quality matters more.”

“We are shifting our rating in this race from Toss Up to Lean Democrat, and it could move into even safer Democratic territory as the cycle goes on.”

Doug Mastriano (R) was projected to win the state’s GOP gubernatorial primary Tuesday despite a flagging effort from some Republicans to block him from the nomination, The Hill reports.

New York Times: “In his short time in public office, Mr. Mastriano, 58, has emerged as Pennsylvania’s leading far-right figure.”

Former President Donald Trump “is leaning strongly towards endorsing the highly controversial Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R) for governor,” Axios reports.

“Mastriano — who was at the Capitol on Jan. 6 — has gone beyond trying to help Trump overturn the 2020 election; he’s proposed defying Pennsylvania’s popular vote outcome and spoke at an event last month promoting QAnon conspiracies.”

“Democrats are salivating because they see him as beatable in a general election even in a political environment that’s extremely favorable to Republicans.”

New York Times: For many Pennsylvania voters, Trumpism is bigger than Trump.

Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Jake Corman (R) said “that he was ending his campaign and endorsing rival Lou Barletta (R), a move that comes as GOP leaders warn that leading candidate Doug Mastriano is too far right to win in a general election,” the AP reports.

 A new Trafalgar Group poll in Pennsylvania finds Doug Mastriano (R) leading the GOP gubernatorial primary field with 28%, followed by Lou Barletta (R) at 18%, Dave White (R) at 15% and William McSwain (R) at 14%.

Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano (R) abruptly ended an interview with Delaware Valley Journal, “angry over questions about his participation in a rally linked to QAnon conspiracy advocates.”

He also “objected to questions about his participation in the infamous January 6 protest that preceded the riot at the U.S. Capitol. More than 750 people have been arrested for their role in the assault on the Capitol building.”

Said Mastriano: “I resent the fact that you want to castigate anyone who went down to Washington D.C. on January 6th as some kind of enemy of the public. That is dangerous. You’re talking like an East German there.”

President Pro Tempore of Pennsylvania’s Senate Jake Corman (R) “has petitioned to remain in the race for Governor hours after petitioning to have his name removed from the ballot after reportedly speaking with former President Donald Trump, who has not yet endorsed a candidate in the race,” WHTM reports.

Amanda Carpenter: “LOL, if you thought Donald Trump’s endorsement of Dr. Mehmet Oz for Senate was the worst development in Pennsylvania’s 2022 GOP primaries, wait until you hear about the Republicans running for governor.”

“Pennsylvania Republicans will nominate a 2020 election conspiracist for governor in the May 17 primary. How can I be sure of that? Because they’re all election conspiracists. The only thing differentiating them is how far down the rabbit hole they go. And, there’s an excellent chance the nuttiest bunny of them all, Doug Mastriano, is going to win the primary.”

“Which means that Republicans might get a crackpot governing this swing state in 2024. What could possibly go wrong?”