On Monday, Gov. Tom Wolf announced he would be naming Leigh M. Chapman to replace Veronica Degraffenreid as Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth.
Degraffenreid will be elevated to the position of special advisor to the governor, Wolf said.
“Acting Secretary Degraffenreid has served with distinction over the past year, administering two smooth elections and spearheading the modernization of key IT infrastructure. I commend her for her steady leadership during a challenging period in election administration, and look forward to working closely with her in her new role,” Wolf said. “As we move into a new year and new election cycle, I have full confidence that Leigh M. Chapman will continue the Department’s efforts to lead Pennsylvania through a smooth election process and ensure that Pennsylvania voters continue to experience free and fair elections, among many responsibilities.”
Chapman is currently the executive director of Deliver My Vote, a non-partisan, non-profit organization focusing on research and education about voting by mail. Previously, Chapman was a senior leader at the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, as well as several other non-profit election reform and advocacy groups. From 2015 to 2017, Chapman was policy director at the Department of State, where she advanced several agenda items, including electronic voter registration implementation.
“I am honored and excited to be returning to the Department of State to serve as Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Chapman said. “Throughout my career, I have worked to ensure that voting rights are protected and to improve access to the ballot box. I look forward to continuing that work in my new role, and to build on the tremendously successful election reforms in Pennsylvania over the last several years.”
The Howard University School of Law and the University of Virginia graduate will begin her tenure as Acting Secretary on Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022.