Richey is the chair of Allegheny County’s Republican Committee, and ran unsuccessfully in the crowded 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary. His announcement Thursday was followed shortly by a statement from Garrity endorsing him as her preferred running mate. Candidates for governor and lieutenant governor are voted for separately on each party’s primary ballot, and then appear as a ticket in the general election. Democrats are not expected to have a contested gubernatorial primary this year, with no challengers thus far to incumbent Gov. Richey’s emergence as Garrity’s running mate is unlikely to have a major impact on the tenor of the race.