The Josh Shapiro sexual harassment cover-up scandal is actually quite bad

Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro is on the shortlist to be Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate and with his newfound national profile comes plenty of scrutiny. In addition to progressive furor over his stance on the Israel-Hamas war, Shapiro is also under fire for allegedly covering up a case of sexual harassment in his office. 

National media organizations have acknowledged that Governor Shapiro’s office settled a sexual harassment complaint for nearly $295,000 just last year. Former cabinet secretary Mike Vereb, a top aide to Shapiro, was accused of repeatedly making sexual advances and inappropriate comments toward a female office employee. The unnamed woman signed a non-disclosure agreement under the settlement, so there are many open questions regarding what Shapiro knew and when he knew it. 

A national non-profit women’s group is hammering Shapiro for his handling of the incident. 

“Governor Shapiro’s office should have done a better job preventing sexual harassment happening in his own office by former cabinet secretary Mike Vereb, including protecting the survivor who bravely came forward, ensuring that any other potential survivors felt safe in speaking up and ensuring the harasser didn’t have the opportunity to do further harm after the complaint,” Emma Davidson Tribbs, director of the National Women’s Defense League, said in a statement. 

The details of the case beyond the settlement amount have mostly been absent from national media reports, but local news that covered the story since Vereb’s abrupt resignation in October 2023 reveal just how potentially damaging the incident could be for Shapiro’s growing national profile. 

“There are two faces of Josh Shapiro and it is important that Americans know what they are really getting,” a Pennsylvania based political operative told The Spectator. 

Vereb’s accuser worked for him for less than two months as the alleged harassment started almost immediately. Within days, coworkers were making jokes about a possible relationship between her and Vereb and warned that he had treated other women similarly in the office. Vereb allegedly told her that if she decided she wanted to have a sexual relationship with him, “Go close the door to this office, tell me to bend you over this conference table, hike your skirt up and [have sex]… That would be our decision to make.” He later called her and suggested they sleep together in the tunnels under the state Capitol and demanded to know who in the office was talking about them. 

The woman says she complained to higher-ups about his behavior multiple times in early March. A few days later, Vereb accused her of performing poorly in her job. Her requests to move to a different position so that Vereb was no longer her supervisor were denied — and she ultimately quit her job. She later filed a formal complaint with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission in May, a copy of which was obtained by the Philadelphia Inquirer. 

Four months later, in early September, Shapiro’s office finalized the details of a settlement with Vereb’s accuser for $295,000 of taxpayer money. Vereb, however, did not leave his job for another three weeks. Even then, he was not fired. He resigned with a glowing statement from Shapiro’s female chief of staff, Dana Fritz. It made no mention of the brewing scandal. “Mike has been a key member of our team and thanks to his dedicated service, the Governor’s Office is prepared for the work ahead. We wish Mike all the best and we’re grateful for his service,” Fritz said. 

It took several more days for news of the sexual harassment allegations to break. 

Manuel Bonder, a spokesperson for Governor Shapiro, reacted to the news at the time, saying that while the administration “does not comment on specific personnel matters, it takes allegations of discrimination and harassment seriously.”

“These procedures are implemented whenever complaints of discrimination or harassment are made and provide detailed guidance to help ensure that allegations are promptly and fully investigated and that employees feel comfortable to report misconduct,” Bonder said of office procedures for investigating complaints. 

There are still many questions that remain about the incident, however. 

First, when Shapiro knew that his top aide had been accused of sexual harassment. According to the Inquirer, “copies of the woman’s supposedly confidential complaint and statement to investigators had been circulating among lawmakers and lobbyists for weeks” by the time Vereb resigned in September.” Several Pennsylvania politicos have confirmed to me that the allegation was something of an “open secret” in Harrisburg and that everyone know Vereb was a “creep.” And, if the woman’s complaint is accurate, Shapiro’s employees knew it too. 

Shapiro has not said much about the incident except for saying that it is a private, personnel matter and that his office is dedicated to protecting the privacy of everyone involved. 

Second, why Vereb got to remain in the governor’s office until September and why the office did not acknowledge the complaint when he resigned. What was done to protect other women in the office who were still working under Vereb while the Pennsylvania Human Resources complaint was investigated? 

Third, what were the results of the investigation and how far did it proceed before the parties reached a settlement? 

Broad + Liberty, a Pennsylvania news outlet, filed several Right to Know requests with the governor’s office and have been repeatedly stonewalled. The Office of Open Records ordered Shapiro’s office to turn over some of the requested documents, which seem to suggest that no investigation was fully completed. The news outlet is currently suing the governor’s office for the additional records, but what they have reported on so far is incredibly damning. 

“A document obtained by Broad + Liberty suggests that Governor Josh Shapiro’s office may have been providing legal advice to then-secretary of legislative affairs Mike Vereb while simultaneously investigating Vereb for workplace harassment claims made by one of his subordinates in March 2023,” the outlet reported yesterday. 

A video unintentionally released by the Philadelphia mayor Friday gave the impression that Shapiro will be chosen as Kamala Harris’s running mate. If that is the case, will national media get more curious about what exactly happened with Shapiro and his alleged sex pest?