Senator Biography

• Dawn Keefer has been a champion of right-sizing government and reining in government regulation during her time in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 2017-2024, and since her election to the state Senate in November 2024. As State Representative of the 92nd legislative district in Northern York County, Keefer cut her legislative teeth during her first year in office, developing a non-taxing solution to balance a state budget that included $1.5 billion more in spending than in projected revenues. Keefer was a key member of a small group of legislators who comprehensively exposed the Commonwealth’s shadow budget – a budget that operates outside of the state’s General Fund and possesses billions of surplus dollars. She quickly became a point person on special fund account activity and remains a watchdog for the taxpayers, working to bring these funds back into the General Fund and back into the hands of those who can be held accountable at the ballot box.
• This fighting spirit, along with a fierce commitment to individual freedom, is why Dawn was recruited to establish and chair Pennsylvania’s Freedom Caucus in the fall of 2022. Under Dawn’s leadership members of the PA Freedom Caucus offered and championed policy solutions to limit government and empower individuals and businesses and served as the backstop against initiatives attempting to grow government or siphon freedoms.
• Keefer is a free-market, fiscal conservative with more than 27 years of professional and government experience. As a small business owner for over ten years, Dawn operated a consulting firm focused on public relations, grass-roots strategy, membership development and fundraising. Additionally, Dawn’s husband, Tom, has owned and operated a custom motorcycle business for more than 20 years. On both a professional and personal level she understands the day-to-day challenges of small businesses as she and her husband have experienced just how economically hostile Pennsylvania is for owners of small businesses.
• Dawn’s personal and professional experiences are the impetus of her commitment to policy that gets government out of the way and allows families and businesses to prosper in a Commonwealth that’s ripe with opportunity. She believes every expansion of government, at any level, results in a loss of personal freedoms and aggressively works against legislative proposals that grow government. To that end, Dawn has led the charge in regulatory reform, budget spending limits and transparency.
• Dawn’s dedication to Pennsylvania and the people she represents is demonstrated through her work and her consistent engagement with communities throughout York and Cumberland counties. Staying well connected to the people who chose her to represent their interests in Harrisburg is central to everything Dawn does. Being well connected and having an open-door policy positions Dawn to act swiftly and confidently and has enabled her to be truly effective for the people she represents.

• Business Owner