Senator Dan Laughlin is a Republican representing Pennsylvania's 49th Senatorial District, which includes nearly all of Erie County. Born in Erie and raised in the Erie Heights housing project, he is the son of a decorated World War II combat veteran who worked as a union carpenter and a mother who assembled fighter planes during the war. He graduated from Fort LeBoeuf High School in 1980, trained as a machinist, briefly attended Penn State Behrend, and built a career in construction and business. Laughlin joined his brother’s construction firm, becoming a full partner in Laughlin Builders, a premier home builder in the region. The brothers later formed Waste Away, a trash disposal company sold to Pro Waste Corp., and expanded into Clear Water Foam and Laughlin Properties . As a small business owner, he advocates for job creation, limited government spending, tax relief, and regulatory reform to make state government more accessible and accountable. Married to Peggy Schneider, a mechanical engineer, they have two sons, Spencer and Nathaniel, and a daughter, Sinclaire, and attend Grace Church in McKean.

Education and Political Experience

• Education: Graduated from Fort LeBoeuf High School ; trained as a machinist at a local skill center; briefly enrolled at Penn State Behrend campus.
• Political Experience: Elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate in 2016; reelected in 2020 and 2024; sworn in for third term in January 2025. Serves as chairman of the Senate Law and Justice Committee and vice chairman of the Game and Fisheries Committee; member of Environmental Resources and Energy, Finance, Health & Human Services, Labor and Industry, and Rules and Executive Nominations committees. Senate representative on the Advisory Council of the Pennsylvania Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Home in Erie. Notable initiatives include Senate Bill 400 to repeal closed primaries for independents and Senate Bill 49 for a Pennsylvania Cannabis Control Board.