Our Elected Officials

United States Senator Pat Toomey

Growing up the third of six children in a blue-collar, working class family—his father a union worker and his mother a part-time secretary at the family’s parish church—Pat was taught the values of hard work and self-reliance. His dedication and discipline as a student earned him entry to Harvard University; his perseverance and part-time jobs allowed him to earn his degree.

Upon graduating from Harvard, Pat spent six years working in the international capital markets. He helped businesses expand and create new jobs by lowering borrowing costs and managing exposure to changing interest and currency exchange rates.

When Pat left the financial sector in 1990, he and his brothers started a successful, family-owned restaurant business with several Pennsylvania locations.

In 1997, after nearly 10 years as a small business owner, Pat grew weary of the huge tax burdens imposed on Pennsylvania's small businesses. So he acted. Pat ran and won a seat representing Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District in Washington for three consecutive terms.

In office, Pat was one of Congress's leading advocates for limited government and personal freedom. He led efforts to expand tax cuts and reduce wasteful spending. And because of his exemplary leadership on the economic front, he received top scores from national fiscal watchdog groups such as Citizens Against Government Waste, Americans for Tax Reform, the National Taxpayers Union, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Most recently, Pat served as president of the limited government, free-enterprise advocacy organization, The Club for Growth. Pat lives in Zionsville, Pa. with his wife Kris and their three children.

Growing up the third of six children in a blue-collar, working class family—his father a union worker and his mother a part-time secretary at the family’s parish church—Pat was taught the values of hard work and self-reliance. His dedication and discipline as a student earned him entry to Harvard University; his perseverance and part-time jobs allowed him to earn his degree.

Upon graduating from Harvard, Pat spent six years working in the international capital markets. He helped businesses expand and create new jobs by lowering borrowing costs and managing exposure to changing interest and currency exchange rates.

When Pat left the financial sector in 1990, he and his brothers started a successful, family-owned restaurant business with several Pennsylvania locations.

In 1997, after nearly 10 years as a small business owner, Pat grew weary of the huge tax burdens imposed on Pennsylvania's small businesses. So he acted. Pat ran and won a seat representing Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District in Washington for three consecutive terms.

In office, Pat was one of Congress's leading advocates for limited government and personal freedom. He led efforts to expand tax cuts and reduce wasteful spending. And because of his exemplary leadership on the economic front, he received top scores from national fiscal watchdog groups such as Citizens Against Government Waste, Americans for Tax Reform, the National Taxpayers Union, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Pat served as president of the limited government, free-enterprise advocacy organization, The Club for Growth. Pat lives in Zionsville, Pa. with his wife Kris and their three children.

United States Congressmen Pat Toomey

On November 2, 2010, Pat Meehan was elected to serve as the representative of Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District in the United States Congress.

After the election, Meehan quickly earned the praise and respect of his colleagues in Congress. He was elected by his peers to serve as one of three freshmen members of the House Republican Steering Committee, the body that decides committee assignments for members of the Republican Caucus. This prestigious appointment not only exemplified Meehan’s status as a leader of his freshman class but helped him forge vital relationships with the leadership of the House Republican Caucus. 

In the 112th Congress, Meehan will serve on the Transportation and Infrastructure, Government Oversight and Reform and the Homeland Security Committees. As a member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, Meehan chairs the Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism, and is one of only a select few freshman members granted a subcommittee chairmanship. 

Congressman Meehan’s career in public service began with his election as Delaware County District Attorney. Just days after being sworn in as Delaware County D.A., millionaire John DuPont was arrested for the murder of wrestler David Schultz. Meehan successfully led the prosecution of DuPont, as well as the prosecution of several other notable cases such as the murder of local college student Aimee Willard. 

While Delaware County D.A., Meehan created the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, a specialized unit dedicated to getting online predators off the streets. The ICAC Task Force continues to protect local children from online predators and has served as a national model for other such units across the country. 

In 2001, Meehan was appointed by the President to serve as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and was sworn in just days after the 9/11 attacks. As U.S. Attorney, Meehan was responsible for the prosecution of all federal crimes occurring within a nine-county area with more than five million residents. Meehan took on nursing homes neglecting their patients, fought manufacturers illegally dumping waste and pioneered new techniques to prevent domestic violence. 

Pat earned national praise for his prosecutions of corrupt public officials, including former Philadelphia treasurer Corey Kemp, Councilman Rick Mariano and State Senator Vince Fumo. The prosecutions of politicians from both parties earned Meehan a national reputation for integrity and commitment to the rule of law. 

A graduate of Bowdoin College and Temple Law School, Meehan worked his way through college with jobs in a rubber factory and digging manholes during the summer. After college, Pat spent two years as an NHL Hockey Referee. Pat, his wife Carolyn, and his three sons reside in Drexel Hill, Delaware County.

State Representative Mike Vereb

Mike Vereb was elected to represent the 150th Legislative District in Montgomery County in November 2006.

As a state lawmaker, Mike will work to achieve true property tax reform for all Pennsylvanians. He also will work to preserve valuable open space and improve regional traffic planning. Finally, he will fight to reform the way government does business in Harrisburg.

Public service has long been a calling for Mike. He served as president of the West Norriton Board of Commissioners, where he worked hard to make government more responsive and accountable to the taxpayers by holding the line on taxes, preserving open space and supporting first responders.

He also served as a board member-at-large for the West Norriton Little League, a member of the Hancock Fire Company, a member of the Pastoral Council for Visitation BVM, a board member for Visitation BVM Children Youth Organization and an advisory board member for the Norristown Police Athletic League.

Mike also brings plenty of professional and real world experience with him to Harrisburg. He has 20 years of combined law enforcement and corporate security experience, including 10 years with the West Conshohocken Police Department, and corporate security work at both Comcast and Day and Zimmerman Security Services.

Mike and his wife are raising their family in West Norriton, where Mike has been a life long resident.

Bruce L Castor Jr., Commissioner

Bruce L. Castor, Jr. served as the elected District Attorney of Montgomery County, PA from 1999 until January 7, 2008, when he became the elected County Commissioner for Montgomery County.

During Mr. Castor's 22 year prosecutorial career, he received the Trial Advocacy Award from the National Association of Government Attorneys in Capital Litigation for his work investigating and prosecuting homicides. He has received recognition for his efforts by the state legislature on two occasions, as well as by Governors Ridge and Casey. In 1990, he was named by the Chamber of Commerce as Montgomery County's Law Enforcement Man of the Year. Mr. Castor has been listed on the Martindale-Hubble Lawyer Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers since 1996 and has been named a "Pennsylvania Super Lawyer," by Philadelphia Magazine in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. The Citizens Crime Commission of the Greater Delaware Valley has honored Mr. Castor multiple times during his career, and he was inducted into the Pennsylvania Police Hall of Fame in 2007. The Montgomery Bar Association awarded Mr. Castor its Louis DeStefano award for lifetime achievement promoting the rule of law and administration of justice.

Prior to becoming the twice-elected District Attorney of Montgomery County, Mr. Castor served as First Assistant District Attorney, Deputy District Attorney (Chief of Trials), Assistant District Attorney in charge of the Major Crimes Unit, and as an assistant district attorney on the Sex Crimes Unit. He has supervised the County Investigating Grand Jury and conducted numerous wiretap investigations. He has also acted as special prosecutor for the Office of Attorney General on many occasions. He frequently lectures on topics related to investigation and prosecution.

In addition to Pennsylvania, Mr. Castor is a member of the bar of the United States Supreme Court, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, and the Federal District Court. Mr. Castor is past President of the Pennsylvania District Attorneys' Association, a member the Pennsylvania and Montgomery Bar Associations, and a charter member of the Pennsylvania Homicide Investigators' Association. He has served on the board of the Montgomery Bar Association and further served as a Trustee of Norristown State Hospital having been appointed by Governor Ridge and again by Governor Casey. He served on the Juvenile Court Rules Committee of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

Mr. Castor acquired his undergraduate degree from Lafayette College and his law degree from Washington and Lee University where he received the graduation prize in criminal law. He has received advanced education from the National College of District Attorneys and at the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia.

Mr. Castor is a life long resident of Montgomery County and lives in Lower Salford Township with his wife and their two children.

Risa Vetri Ferman, District Attorney

Risa Vetri Ferman is the elected District Attorney of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.  She began her term in January 2008 after serving fifteen years as an Assistant District Attorney in the county.  Prior to her election DA Ferman served for six years as First Assistant DA, overseeing all operations of the District Attorney's Office and County Detective Bureau; she served for four years as a Deputy District Attorney supervising both the Trials and Pre-trials Divisions; she served as the Captain of the Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Unit and a Trials Assistant District Attorney specializing in sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse.

District Attorney Ferman is a Montgomery County native. She graduated from Abington High School in 1983.  She attended the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 1987 with a B.A. in History. In 1992, she earned her law degree from the Widener University School of Law, Wilmington, Delaware.  Prior to attending law school, DA Ferman worked in a family owned retail jewelry chain of stores located in the Philadelphia metropolitan area.

District Attorney Ferman co-founded two non-profit organizations to benefit and protect abused children. The Montgomery Child Advocacy Project ("MCAP") provides pro-bono legal services for abused children. Mission Kids is working with Montgomery County's Child Protection Team to open a child advocacy center - a child friendly facility where all disciplines involved in the investigation and prosecution of child abuse provide coordinated services to kids to minimize trauma to abused children.  DA Ferman serves as President of the Board of Directors of Mission Kids and as a Board member for MCAP.  In 2003, the Montgomery Bar Foundation honored District Attorney Ferman with the Louis D. Stefan Law Enforcement Award for her role in the creation of the Child Advocacy Project.  In 2007, District Attorney Ferman was named as Law Enforcement Officer of the Year by the Valley Forge Optimist Club and Outstanding Citizen of the Year by the Schuylkill Valley Alliance Chamber of Commerce.  In 2008, members of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 14 named District Attorney Ferman as an Honorary Member.

District Attorney Ferman currently serves on the Criminal Procedural Rules Committee of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.  DA Ferman is a member of the Pennsylvania District Attorney's Association and serves on the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania District Attorney's Institute - which provides training for police and prosecutors across the Commonwealth.  DA Ferman frequently lectures on topics related to criminal investigation, prosecution and crime prevention for law enforcement, prosecutors and community groups.

Nancy J. Becker, Recorder of Deeds

Elected as the Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds in 2003, Nancy Becker is an accomplished, professional administrator and manager with over 35 years experience in real estate, financial management, and strategic planning.

Currently she directs the Recorder of Deeds Office, full time, with a staff of twenty-five (25) who maintain the integrity of all land records and other documents entrusted to the department as well as the collection and monthly distribution of County/State fees and real estate Transfer taxes for the State, townships, boroughs, and school districts; while professionally serving the public with efficiency, accountability, and responsibility.

Over these past 5 years, as the Recorder of Deeds, Nancy has implemented new revenue sources, saved taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars ($750,000.00 alone in 2006), managed and cut costs; increased efficiency, timely recording and high accuracy rates; prioritized advanced, user-friendly systems, constituent services, security, and disaster recovery; and initiated procedures to protect residents from real estate fraud.

She initiated, coordinated, and spear-headed public effort for sponsorship and support of Senate Bill 1331, which prohibits the state from imposing and collecting state sales and Use Taxes for certain public services performed by any county governmental agency and/or court, and House Bill 1634 (Act 110), which eliminates the need to pre-register a deed prior to recording, thereby saving the residents of Montgomery County tens of thousands of dollars.

Under her direction, the Recorder of Deeds office has become a model of document management:

• One of the highest tech land records offices in the country.
• One of the first in the state to electronically record land documents (eRecord) accelerating document recording, creating efficiencies, reducing errors, and dramatically improving the county's ability to serve its constituents. "eRecording" is a government priority at both the Federal and State levels. It is just one of the priorities that I am initiating to comply with the Montgomery County Commissioners' eGoverment initiative.
• One of the first in the state to apply artificial intelligence software, Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) to automatically capture document data.
• One of the first counties in state to participate in its eNotary initiative.
• Digitizing land plans in order to make them available through direct computer entry allowing faster access to information.
• Digitized land records dating back from 1784.
• Implemented Disaster Tolerant/Recovery plan by total "redundant replication" of data and images.
• Offer office information and forms online and in the process of integrating a digital archiving system.
• Founded the first Property Records Educational Partners (PREP) organization in Pennsylvania, to maintain technological advancement, education, and user-friendly constituent service.

As a wife, mother of 2 and grandmother of 5, Nancy believes that responsibility of citizenship means being involved in the community. She has been a member of numerous community boards and commissions. To mention some, she is the President of the Northern Montgomery County Drug & Alcohol Task Force, Southeast Regional Chairperson of the Property Records Educational Partners; member of the Board of Directors of the Property Reorders Industry Association, Co-Chair of the Law Enforcement Collaborative, working with the FBI Mortgage and Land Fraud Task Force, a member of the Montgomery County Drug & Alcohol Planning Committee, the Northern Montco Technical Career Center Educational Opportunities Council, the North Penn School District Drug Free & Safe Schools Committee, the Towamencin Township Park and Recreation Advisory Council, the American Society of Professional & Executive Women, Second Vice President of the Pennsylvania Recorder of Deeds Association, and the International Association of Clerks, Recorders, Elected Officials & Clerks.

Nancy has also played a significant part in raising millions of dollars in grants and contributions for public causes.

She has also been deeply involved in the political process and the Montgomery County Republican Party:

• Montgomery County Republican Women's Leadership (1994-2002)
• Montgomery County Republican Committee Chairman's Club
• Montgomery County Republican Committee Area 9 Vice Chairperson (1994-1998)
• Montgomery County Republican Committee New Majority Council
• Montgomery County Council of Republican Women (1991 to Present)
• President (2000-2002)
• Treasurer (2008- present)
• 1st Vice President (1996-1998)
• 2nd Vice President (1994-1996)
• Board of Directors (1994-1996)
• Montgomery County Court House Hill Council of Republican Women
• First Vice President
• Pennsylvania Council of Republican Women (Director)
• Republican State Committee (1996 to Present)
• Republican Committee Woman, Towamencin Township 1-2 (1988 to Present)
• Treasurer (1992-Present)
• Republican Poll Worker (1971-Present)
• Served on more than thirty (30) Republican campaign committees for Federal, State, County, and local candidates during thirty-two (32) years of Republican service

Nancy and her husband Mike have lived in Towamencin, Montgomery County for over 34 years.

Marie N. Cavanaugh, Jury Commissioner

Marie N. Cavanaugh was elected Jury Commissioner in 2001. During her first year in office obtained the necessary funding to implement a state of the art software system specifically for jury procedures. As a result, Montgomery County's system of operation has been revamped and updated.

This and subsequent actions have improved the way jurors are summoned and requests for deferral or excuse are processed. The scanning of bar codes speeds the taking of attendance and selection of jury panels for the courtroom. Jury2009 Plus allows those summoned for jury duty to respond to the questionnaire, or request postponement of service, online. These improvements and others have saved the taxpayers thousands of dollars in postage and other expenses.

Prior to her service as Jury Commissioner, Marie was a legislative assistant in both the Pennsylvania Senate and House of Representatives. She also worked in the office of the Montgomery County Commissioners and was District Office Manager for U.S. Congressman Jon D. Fox.

An avid Republican, Marie is an Area Leader, Committeewoman, a former Municipal Chairman and served as Vice-Chairman of the Montgomery County Republican Committee from 2002 to 2004. Over the years she has managed or chaired many local and legislative campaigns, as well as four countywide races.

Governor Tom Corbett


Tom Corbett was inaugurated as the 46th Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on January 18th, 2011.

A life-long Pennsylvania resident, Corbett has been a key advisor to U.S. Presidents and Governors. He has a long and distinguished career serving the citizens of the Commonwealth, making a significant impact on the lives of Pennsylvanians through his work on issues of criminal justice, victims' rights and drug and alcohol prevention and rehabilitation.

In the early 1980's, Tom Corbett served President Ronald Reagan as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, specializing in prosecuting organized crime and drug cases. He was also named as one of the first members of President Reagan's National Drug Task Force.

Following several years of private law practice, Corbett was called back to public service in 1989, when President George H. W. Bush appointed him to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

In the 1990's, Corbett provided criminal law and policy expertise to then-Congressman Tom Ridge, later filling several key roles in Governor Ridge's administration. Corbett planned the Governor's successful special session on crime and was appointed to chair the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, shaping criminal justice policy and working to improve drug and alcohol prevention and rehabilitation programs across the state.

In 1995, Corbett was appointed by Governor Ridge as Attorney General to fill the remainder of the current term. Upon receiving approval and confirmation from the Pennsylvania Senate, Corbett pledged that he would not run for re-election in 1996. He served as Attorney General in this capacity from 1995-1997.

In 1997, Tom Corbett again returned to private practice, forming his own law firm, Thomas Corbett and Associates, which specializes in consultation and government relations. He continued that private practice until his election as Pennsylvania Attorney General in November 2004.

In 2008, Governor-elect Tom Corbett was re-elected as Pennsylvania’s Attorney General with more than three million votes, which is more votes than any Republican candidate in the history of Pennsylvania.

Tom Corbett's accomplishments as Attorney General have brought him national recognition. Most notable are his efforts to protect our children from internet predators, our seniors from fraud and abuse, our communities from gangs and the violence associated with illegal drugs and the citizens of Pennsylvania from abuse of power and government corruption.

As Attorney General, Tom Corbett has worked hard to protect taxpayers’ hard earned money by going after predatory lenders, pharmaceutical companies and big oil companies that took advantage of consumers. In less than six years, the Office of Attorney General returned and saved Pennsylvania taxpayers over half a billion dollars.

Born and raised in Pennsylvania, Corbett served his country as a member of the Pennsylvania National Guard 28th Infantry Division from 1971 until 1984, rising from private to captain.
Corbett received his undergraduate degree from Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pennsylvania, and taught civics and history in

Pine Grove Area High School in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. In 1975, he received his law degree from St. Mary's University School of Law in San Antonio, Texas.

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