Michael Zvalaren
Michael Zvalaren (Democratic Party) is running for election to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives to represent District 123. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024. He advanced from the Democratic primary on April 23, 2024.
Zvalaren completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Michael Zvalaren was born in New Jersey. He earned a high school diploma from Hopatcong High School, a bachelor's degree from Seton Hall University in 2004, a graduate degree from the Rutgers University–Newark in 2006, and a Ph.D. from Lehigh University in 2021. His career experience includes working as an educator and in sales.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Pennsylvania House of Representatives elections, 2024
General election
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
General election for Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 123
Incumbent Tim Twardzik and Michael Zvalaren are running in the general election for Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 123 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | ||
 | Tim Twardzik (R) | |
 | Michael Zvalaren (D)  | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 123
Michael Zvalaren advanced from the Democratic primary for Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 123 on April 23, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michael Zvalaren | 98.4 | 3,553 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 1.6 | 59 | ||
| Total votes: 3,612 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 123
Incumbent Tim Twardzik advanced from the Republican primary for Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 123 on April 23, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Tim Twardzik | 99.1 | 5,440 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.9 | 52 | ||
| Total votes: 5,492 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign finance
Endorsements
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Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Michael Zvalaren completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Zvalaren's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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Mike Zvalaren graduated from Hopatcong High School in 2001, earned his BA in History from Seton Hall University in 2004, his MA in History from Rutgers-Newark in 2006, and after taking a few years off to begin teaching, his Ph.D. in History from Lehigh University in 2021. He has lived in PA since 2009 and moved to Schuylkill County with his wife and three children in 2019. Dr. Zvalaren continues to teach college-level history, as well as working as a Kitchen Designer for a local lumber company.
- There is nothing more important to me than the rights of the people. For the past decade, certain politicians have used their power and position to try to take rights away from Americans, and I won't stand for that. Our civil rights are granted to us by birth, by citizenship, and by the Constitution, and their gradual erosion is the greatest danger we face today.
- Schuylkill County is a working-class community, and it deserves a working-class voice to represent it. I have worked multiple jobs at a time to keep food on the table and give my children the life they deserved while earning an education that I hope will open new doors for me and my family. I know what it is to struggle, I know what it takes to make it in this world, and I know what issues matter most to people like you and me.
- Schuylkill County has provided Pennsylvania, the United States, and the world with energy and manufacturing for over two centuries, and it's past time the world give back. Our water, our air, and our very health have been negatively impacted over the years. We need to tap state and federal funds to clean up the mess made by energy companies. We need to bring new, well-paying, union jobs in emerging industries. And, we need to ensure that every person in Schuylkill County has access to quality healthcare, child care, and senior care.
Civil rights, education, environment, business, criminal justice, technology, labor, finance, and healthcare.
I have a great deal of respect and admiration for Malcolm Kenyatta. He has worked his way up from a challenging upbringing to become a State Representative, and he's currently running to be our Auditor General. I find his background, his message, and his attitude inspiring, and I try to emulate him as much as possible.
In John F. Kennedy's book Profiles of Courage, there is a story about Edmund G. Ross and the Johnson impeachment trial. While it may not be a 100% accurate retelling of events, the sentiment that Ross did what was unpopular because it was what was right, that he defied his party to save the Union, is one I hold very dear.
The most important characteristic for an elected official is integrity. People need to know their representatives are going to do the right thing for them, not the profitable thing for themselves, every single time. Call it honesty, integrity, trustworthiness, but people need to know the person they elect to be their voice will actually be THEIR voice, and not simply the voice of their big-money donors or country club friends.
I'm honest, I'm intelligent, I'm a hard-worker, I'm easy to get a long with, but most of all, I'm just a regular guy. I'm not walking into this with an ego or with big-money donors to feed. I'm in it for the people because I AM one of the people!
The core responsibility of a representative in the state assembly is to do what is best for the people in Pennsylvania.
I want people to remember me as someone who did what was right, who was honest and fair, and who protected those who could not protect themselves.
I remember the Berlin Wall coming down on November 9, 1989 when I was six, largely because November 9 is my oldest sister's birthday, so it kind of stuck out that something big was was going on!
My first job was at McDonald's where I worked for four years (from 15 to 19), leaving as an Assistant Manager to go manage a cigar store in a nearby mall.
Probably The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. It's tough to nail down just one book, but it's one I teach every semester in my Vietnam War course, and it's a book that so clearly encapsulates the feel of the war that it allows 18-year-old students five decades removed from its end to understand it. That's a tough trick to turn, but it certainly does so!
Bruce Springsteen, "Promised Land"
I don't come from money, so having money to do the things I wanted, be it affording medicine, buying a car, or making sure the kids get a yearly vacation - even if it's just a day trip to Hershey, the beach or Knoebels - has always been a struggle. My wife gets on me because I never spend money on myself; I wear shoes until they fall apart and have the same golf clubs I inherited from an uncle as a teenager, but I'd rather spend what limited discretionary funds I have on making my wife and children happy. There's nothing I can purchase for myself that's going to make me feel better than I do when I get a hug from one of my kids for getting them whatever small bit of nonsense they're after!
The Governor and the State Legislator need to work together for the good of the Commonwealth. There will be a give and take there, as with any productive relationship, but the legislation that comes out of the Assembly and Senate, and gets signed by the Governor, should benefit the greatest number of Pennsylvanians possible.
Pennsylvania is changing, as are America and the world, and our greatest challenge will be to remain on the forefront of those changes and not be left behind. We need to attract new, emerging industries, invest in innovative technology, and ensure this state is a place people want to come to when they decide where they will live and work, not a place they're looking to escape.
I think a certain amount of experience can be beneficial, but I don't think that experience necessarily needs to come from having held office. Personally, I've been active in my local party for years, have served on governance committees at colleges where I've taught, and, as a History Ph.D., I have an expert-level understanding of civics, government, and politics. All of those experiences will help prepare me for this opportunity.
Legislators don't need to like each other, but they do need to be able to respect and work with each other, just like in any other profession or industry. Not everyone needs to be prepared to socialize outside the office, but they do need to be able to bridge their differences to get done what needs doing.
There are perhaps dozens of legislators I look up to that I could list here, but since we share the same birthday, I'll have to say John F. Kennedy is the one I pattern myself after the most.
One thing at a time! I would never rule it out, but my first priority today is to represent the people of Schuylkill County in Harrisburg come January 1, 2025.
It's impossible to choose, really, but just this past weekend, I spoke with a constituent who was between jobs and was having trouble getting unemployment insurance. I've been there, as have most people I know, and the frustration and helplessness felt in those moments breaks my heart today as it broke my spirit when I experienced it years ago. That's the person I want to be helping with my time in Harrisburg.
Guess what? Chicken butt. Greatest joke ever told.
The legislature is perhaps too big a body to deftly respond to issues fast enough to grant the use of emergency powers. While that leaves that power in the hands of the Governor and, thus, leaves open the possibility for abuse of that power, the legislature can rein in those excesses, and has rather recently. As such, I believe that setup to be the best possible configuration today.
When a new quarterback steps onto the field, he often gets a short, high-probability pass right out of the gate to get him acclimated. When elected, the first bill I will introduce will be one I think most reasonable voters would support: a bill that would provide free school breakfasts and lunches for every child in Pennsylvania. Prisoners get three square meals a day, and legislators get free meals, too. If school is compulsory (and it is), then students should be fed while they're there. It wouldn't cost much to do, and it's the right thing to do. It leads to healthier children, higher test scores, and fewer kids going hungry. Seems like the proverbial no-brainer to me, and will be the first bill I will introduce.
Schuylkill County Democrats, Pottsville Democrats, South Schuylkill Democrats
Agriculture & Rural Affairs, Children & Youth, Education, Environmental Resources & Energy, Ethics, Health, Labor & Industry, The Committee To Provide Justice To Otherwise Barred Victims Of Childhood Sexual Abuse (Special Session #1).
Government largess is a problem, and every dollar spent should be accounted for. If we were more cognizant of how much we were spending and on what, we could easier tighten the belt in some places and use that money to better fund other pursuits.
I don't think a ballot initiative process would necessarily be good or bad for Pennsylvania, though I think certain initiatives themselves could fall into one category or another.
While it would be too cumbersome to put every decision before the people, there are certainly times when it becomes necessary, such as times when a party becomes obstructive to giving the people what they want.
The history of ballot initiatives in the state of Pennsylvania is not one of great faith in the voting population. This has been exemplified routinely and as recently as 2023 where some bad legislative actors tried to force through SB 106 as a ballot initiative, or several ballot initiatives, at the last minute with many dangerous amendments to be put on a municipal and judicial year primary ballot. If our history with ballot initiatives was more honest, presented primarily during general elections, I would absolutely have all the faith in the world in the process. Historically PA ballot initiatives have been placed on primary ballots when voting participation is very low. So, while I am completely in agreement with the process itself, how it has been applied in reality as a weapon against the people presents its own challenges and need for change.
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See also
2024 Elections
External links
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Candidate Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 123 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on June 17, 2024
