This week’s biggest Winners & Losers

There’s civic-mindedness – and then there’s devotion on the level of Lorraine Koons, the Lebanon County woman who has voted for, count ‘em, 81 years in a row – including in primary elections. Koons, who calls voting a “duty” and “privilege of being a citizen,” turns 103 next week – and plans to celebrate by voting in her local primary.

Are you tired of squinting through Philadelphia’s Portal livestream at similarly dressed folks in Dublin and Vilnius? How about ogling Pennsylvania rattlesnakes instead? The folks behind Project Rattlecam, which is exactly what it sounds like, will debut a Pennsylvania livestream in 2026, adding East Coast reptilian representation – copperheads and the like – to the project’s existing California and Colorado livestreams…and offering a slithery alternative to World Cup matches.

Good news could be coming sooner rather than later for Jeffrey Osgood, the current executive vice president and chief academic officer at West Chester University. According to a report from PennLive, Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education Chancellor Chris Fiorentino told the Commonwealth University campus community that Osgood is expected to become the university’s next interim president beginning in August, setting him up to replace Bashar Hanna.

Of all the ways to protest Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposed budget, state Sen. Dawn Keefer chose arguably the least tasteful: She posted a social media video of herself setting Shapiro’s budget aflame with a torch – just weeks after the Jewish governor’s residence was badly burned by a hammer-wielding arsonist on Passover. Keefer, a York County conservative, was apparently going for a more historical reference – the 1794 Whiskey Rebellion, a violent farmer’s uprising over liquor taxes. But her joke fell flat in the chamber, prompting Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa to call the fiery act “truly disgusting.”

Attorney General Dave Sunday announced the filing of corrupt organizations charges against Buffalo Skills Games, Inc. and J.J. Amusement, Inc. – two Western Pennsylvania companies operated by John F. Conley, who has previously faced illegal gambling charges. Sunday said his office seized more than 400 illegal gambling devices, which “were essentially slot machines dressed up as skill games.”

More than 40 Rite Aid stores were added this week to the list of locations slated for closure across the commonwealth, bringing the tally to around 90 of Pennsylvania's 300-plus Rite Aid outlets. The Camp Hill-based national drugstore chain filed for bankruptcy in May, having previously filed in 2023 – and this time, customers only have until June 4 to use outstanding gift cards.