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Mark Pinsley

From EverybodyWiki Bios & Wiki


Mark Pinsley
Controller of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
Assumed office
2020
Preceded byGlenn Eckhart
Member of the South Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners
In office
2018–2019
Succeeded byJoe Setton
Personal details
Born1969/1970 (age 56–57)
Political partyDemocratic
Children2
EducationNortheastern University (BSBA)
Indiana University (MBA)
OccupationBusinessman, politician
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Army Reserve

Mark E. Pinsley (born 1969 or 1970) is an American businessman and politician who has served as the controller of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, since 2020. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served on the South Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners and was a candidate in the 2024 Democratic primary for Auditor General of Pennsylvania. He is the Democratic nominee for Pennsylvania's 16th Senate district in the 2026 election, in a rematch against Republican incumbent Jarrett Coleman, who defeated him in 2022.[1][2]

As controller, Pinsley released a 2023 report alleging that a Lehigh Valley Health Network pediatrician had systematically overdiagnosed medical child abuse; his role in the controversy was later examined in The Preventionist, a 2025 podcast from Serial Productions and The New York Times.[3] In 2026, an audit by his office found that a federal immigration enforcement unit had occupied county-owned office space for about three years without paying rent, after which the county ended its lease.[4]

Early life and business career

Pinsley is a native of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.[5] He earned a B.S.B.A. from Northeastern University and an M.B.A. from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University,[6][7] and is a veteran of the United States Army Reserve.[7][5] He has owned and run businesses for about three decades, and owns DermaMed Solutions, a skin-care and device company based in Delaware County.[7][5][8]

Political career

South Whitehall Township Commissioner

Pinsley entered politics in 2017, saying he had been motivated by Donald Trump's presidential campaign rhetoric about Mexicans and Muslims.[8] He was elected to the South Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners that year; a fellow commissioner later called him "the first Democrat in a long time" on the board.[9] He left the board after his election as county controller in 2019, and the board appointed Democrat Joe Setton to fill the seat.[9]

2018 state Senate campaign

While a township commissioner, Pinsley ran in 2018 for the 16th district of the Pennsylvania Senate against longtime Republican incumbent Pat Browne, and lost narrowly, about 51 percent to 49 percent in early returns.[10][7]

Lehigh County Controller

Pinsley was elected controller of Lehigh County in November 2019, unseating two-term Republican incumbent Glenn Eckhart with about 51 percent of the vote.[11] He was reelected in November 2023, defeating Republican Robert Smith Jr., a former member of the Allentown School Board, by more than 6,200 votes in unofficial returns.[12]

The controller acts as the county's elected fiscal watchdog, auditing the use of county funds within a budget of about $520 million. Besides routine audits, Pinsley has carried out discretionary reviews of county policy.[13] In 2020 he recommended that $225,000 in unbudgeted revenue from a renegotiated county jail telephone contract be used to lower the cost of inmates' calls or to provide other assistance to them; the county kept the revenue for jail operations, and call rates were not reduced.[14] A 2021 report by his office concluded that the county was overpaying for prescription drugs under its employee health plan; county officials disputed the findings, while Pinsley said later changes to the plan had saved the county $3 million. He also examined how many county jail inmates were being held because they could not post bail.[13] During the 2023 campaign, Smith called Pinsley's discretionary audits "political stunts" intended to raise his profile for higher office.[13]

In August 2023, Pinsley released a report alleging that Lehigh Valley Health Network had "systematically overdiagnosed cases of medical child abuse", focusing on a pediatrician who faced dozens of lawsuits from families alleging she had falsely accused parents of abuse.[13][6] The physician was reassigned in September 2023 and retired in March 2024; Pinsley said he believed his report had contributed, although the county had no authority to act against her directly.[6] The controversy, including Pinsley's efforts to bring it to public attention, was the subject of The Preventionist, a 2025 podcast by reporter Dyan Neary produced by Serial Productions and The New York Times.[3][15]

In January 2026, Pinsley informed the county executive and board of commissioners that Homeland Security Investigations, a unit of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), had occupied county-owned office space in Allentown for about 38 months without paying rent, leaving $115,425.51 uncollected. He said the debt surfaced after a routine audit found no revenue recorded from the lease. Pinsley recommended eviction, and County Executive Josh Siegel announced that the lease would be terminated.[4][16]

2022 state Senate campaign

Pinsley ran for the 16th Senate district again in 2022. After Jarrett Coleman defeated Browne in the Republican primary, Coleman won the general election over Pinsley, 54.3 percent to 45.7 percent, in unofficial returns.[17]

2024 Auditor General campaign

In December 2023, Pinsley announced a campaign for the Democratic nomination for Auditor General of Pennsylvania, citing his record as county controller and proposing, among other things, to look for savings in state health-care spending.[7][5] He lost the April 2024 primary to state representative Malcolm Kenyatta, who received almost 62 percent of the vote in unofficial returns.[18]

2026 U.S. House campaign (withdrawn)

On July 31, 2025, Pinsley filed to run in the Democratic primary for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district, joining a field that included Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure, former congressional aide Carol Obando-Derstine and former federal prosecutor Ryan Crosswell.[19] He withdrew in February 2026, after raising just over $52,000 in the last quarter of 2025, citing his campaign finances, and announced a third run for the 16th Senate district.[20][2]

2026 state Senate campaign

Pinsley won the May 19, 2026, Democratic primary for the 16th district, defeating Bradley Merkl-Gump by about 54 percent to 46 percent. He faces Coleman in a rematch in the November 3, 2026, general election.[1][2]

Personal life

Pinsley lives in South Whitehall Township with his wife and their two children.[11] He is Jewish and belongs to Congregation Keneseth Israel, a Reform synagogue in Allentown; he has cited the Jewish value of tikkun olam as a motivation for his public work.[8]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Anastasi, John (May 20, 2026). "Merkl-Gump concedes Pa. senate Democratic primary; Pinsley to face Coleman". Bucks County Herald. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Mark Pinsley declares victory in Democratic primary in Pa.'s 16th District Senate race". WFMZ-TV. May 20, 2026. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley discusses case of LVHN doctor accused of misdiagnosing children". WFMZ-TV. November 5, 2025. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Rahman, Billal; Gooding, Dan (January 20, 2026). "ICE Didn't Pay Rent for Three Years as Officials Seek Eviction, Emails Show". Newsweek. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Bunch, Jesse (April 16, 2024). "Malcolm Kenyatta and Mark Pinsley are running in the Democratic primary for Pa. auditor general. Here's what to know". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Swick, Carson (April 1, 2024). "'Entrepreneur' candidate Mark Pinsley runs for Pennsylvania Auditor General". WFMZ-TV. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Mays, Kate; Willett, Paige; Muro, Wynter (April 17, 2024). "Who is Mark Pinsley, a Democrat running for Pa. auditor general?". Spotlight PA. Retrieved October 12, 2026 – via WHYY.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Saffren, Jarrad (February 20, 2024). "Jewish Democrat Mark Pinsley Running for Auditor General in Pennsylvania". Jewish Exponent. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Rumble, Susan (December 28, 2019). "Board defends decision". Lehigh Valley Press. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Browne edges out Pinsley for Senate seat". WFMZ-TV. November 7, 2018. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Palmieri, Debra (November 7, 2019). "Pinsley appears to have unseated two-term Lehigh County controller". Lehigh Valley Press. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  12. ↑ Shortell, Tom (November 8, 2023). "Pinsley claims victory in Lehigh County controller race". Lehigh Valley Public Media. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Shortell, Tom (October 23, 2023). "Transparency or headline hunting? Unconventional audits take center stage in Lehigh County controller race". Lehigh Valley Public Media. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  14. ↑ Reutter, David M. (November 2020). "$225,000 Windfall in Lehigh County, Pa. But Officials Don't Cut Jail Phone Costs". Prison Legal News. p. 36. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  15. ↑ Neary, Dyan (October 21, 2025). "The Preventionist" (Podcast). Serial Productions and The New York Times. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  16. ↑ Sweitzer, Justin (January 20, 2026). "Citing $115,000 in unpaid rent, Lehigh County evicts ICE from Allentown office space". City & State Pennsylvania. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  17. ↑ Shortell, Tom (November 9, 2022). "Republican Jarrett Coleman wins 16th District Senate seat". Lehigh Valley Public Media. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  18. ↑ Addy, Jason (April 24, 2024). "Lehigh County controller falls in bid for statewide office: Unofficial results". Lehigh Valley Public Media. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  19. ↑ Shortell, Tom (July 31, 2025). "Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley enters crowded PA-7 congressional race". Lehigh Valley Public Media. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  20. ↑ Ulrich, Steve (February 18, 2026). "PA-07: Pinsley Drops Out to Make Another State Senate Run". PoliticsPA. Retrieved October 12, 2026.


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