This week’s biggest Winners & Losers

The doctor is in – office, that is. University of Pennsylvania oncologist Robert Vonderheide is the newly elected president of the American Association for Cancer Research. Vonderheide, the current director of Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center, is set to lead AACR starting in 2027. The 118-year-old organization – headquartered in Philadelphia – is the world’s largest cancer research organization, with more than 62,000 members across 143 countries and territories.

Gov. Josh Shapiro’s campaign for reelection is starting the first quarter of the year on a strong footing. Axios reported this week that Shapiro raised more than $10 million in the first quarter of 2026, a sum that builds on the $23 million he brought in in 2025. Not only does Shapiro’s strong fundraising put him in an advantageous position in this year’s gubernatorial race, but Axios’ Holly Otterbein writes that the sum “indicates he could be a formidable fundraiser if he eventually runs for the White House.”

In the latest example of how Pennsylvania communities are stepping up to solve their own healthcare access problems, six Delaware County towns have partnered to create a regional EMS authority, helping to replace the emergency services lost when Crozer-Chester Medical Center closed nearly a year ago. Known as Delco ESA and modeled on a similar grassroots authority in Lancaster County, the service would charge property owners an annual fee to support the service, which is expected to cut response times.

Lehigh County Commissioner Zachary Cole-Borghi faces more than 100 criminal charges following an investigation into a multistate drug ring, with prosecutors alleging that Cole-Borghi was one of roughly 40 people involved with the Death Before Dirt drug ring – and that he even sold drugs from inside Bethlehem City Hall, where he worked as an open records officer. A preliminary hearing into charges against the commissioner was held this week, with more hearings slated for April.

The University of Pennsylvania lost another round in its ongoing conflict with the Trump administration when a federal judge ruled that the president’s Ivy League alma mater must turn over a list of people affiliated with campus Jewish organizations. The order, purportedly to bolster the federal administration’s ongoing efforts to address campus discrimination, was immediately met with a vow by Penn officials to appeal the ruling, who cited concerns about privacy and First Amendment rights.

Pennsylvania has experienced what you could call “capitol loss.” The state’s Office of Tourism 2026 travel guide made an oopsie, displaying a picture of the state Capitol building with the caption, “Philadelphia State Capitol, Philadelphia.” And while we here at City & State are aware of the realities of a publishing oversight, as the state office called it, the unfortunate error can’t be undone in the already printed 2026 tourism guides.