Pennsylvania Governor-Elect Josh Shapiro Appoints 6 Deputy Chiefs of Staff

Pennsylvania Governor-elect Josh Shapiro, in his role as Attorney General, speaks in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Oct. 27, 2022. (Commonwealth Media Service)

Pennsylvania Governor-Elect Josh Shapiro has filled six positions in the governor’s office; “deputy chiefs of staff” who will focus their expertise in various sectors.

They will be staffers on the leadership team in the governor’s office who will act as liaisons to related departments, a spokesperson for Shapiro’s administration confirmed to The Epoch Times.

“With these dynamic, smart, and capable public servants joining our team as deputy chiefs of staff, our administration will hit the ground running to streamline communication, operate nimbly, and get things done for Pennsylvanians,” Shapiro’s incoming Chief of Staff Dana Fritz said in a statement.

“Governor-Elect Shapiro and I are ready to get to work with this diverse and experienced group to build an economy that works for everyone, improve our schools to ensure our children receive a quality education, and make communities across the Commonwealth safer for our families.”

Here are Shapiro’s appointments:

Joseph Lee, Deputy Chief of Staff for Administration and Opportunity

Joseph Lee. (Shapiro Transition Team)

A former political analyst at the Central Intelligence Agency, Joseph Lee helped prepare the president’s daily brief as a member of President Barack Obama’s analytic support staff.

Lee previously spent two years as a management consultant at North Highland, a worldwide management consulting firm.

He is the current acting secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of General Services–the first person of East Asian descent to be appointed as a Pennsylvania cabinet member.

He has also served as Deputy Secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry. Lee grew up in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.

Lindsey Mauldin, Deputy Chief of Staff for Health and Human Services

Lindsey Mauldin. (Shapiro Transition Team)

Lindsey Mauldin began her career with Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania Advocates in 2012, according to her LinkedIn profile.

She worked there in various positions until 2018, when she was hired by Gov. Tom Wolf’s Administration at the Department of Human Services as the director of the Office of Social Programs and the executive policy director.

In 2020 she moved to the Department of Health, working under then-Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine as part of the COVID Response Unit.

In 2021 she returned to Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania part-time and Planned Parenthood Southeastern Pennsylvania full-time, serving as vice president, advocacy and public policy.

“In this role I manage relationships with lawmakers, elected officials, and other community health providers; oversee affiliate communications; develop and implement advocacy and policy strategies; and oversee all security operations including a full-time security team,” her profile says.

Mauldin is from Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

Danielle Okai, Deputy Chief of Staff for Economic Development

Danielle Okai. (Shapiro Transition Team)

Danielle Okai currently serves as Deputy Director of Public Engagement at the U.S Department of Commerce.

Before that, she was senior associate director in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel, where she managed the office’s external stakeholder engagement efforts.

Before joining the Biden-Harris administration, Okai was chief of staff to the Political Department of the Biden-Harris Campaign.

She worked on Gov. Wolf’s 2018 re-election campaign and held several roles in his administration in the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.

Okai taught elementary students Spanish in Camden, N.J., and she taught English as a Fulbright Teaching Assistant in Cartagena. She is originally from Connecticut.

Michael Pipe, Deputy Chief of Staff for Public Safety

Michael Pipe. (Shapiro Transition Team)

Michael Pipe resigned Thursday from his position on the Centre County Board of Commissioners, which he has held since 2012, to take this position.

As a commissioner, Pipe oversaw the multi-stage upgrade of the countywide 9-1-1 radio emergency communications system and expanded the regional emergency services training site for first responders and emergency personnel.

Pipe is a member of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania and the National Association of Counties.

Sam Robinson, Deputy Chief of Staff for Consumers and the Environment

Sam Robinson. (Shapiro Transition Team)

Originally from Philadelphia, Sam Robinson held several roles in the Wolf administration.

Those roles included deputy chief of staff for four years, during which he worked with Pennsylvania’s environmental and energy agencies and administrative and regulatory agencies.

Before that, Robinson was an assistant city solicitor with the City of Philadelphia Law Department.

Tori Shriver, Deputy Chief of Staff for Education and Workforce Development

Tori Shriver of Pittsburgh started at the Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters union in 2017 as a political organizer and was promoted to deputy political director and Pennsylvania state director.

In July 2021, she was named political director for the entire council, responsible for seven states. She also sits on the Minority, Women, Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Advisory Board for Allegheny County.

In 2015, while in college, she interned at Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania.