A page from a Passover haggadah was burned in the arson attack on Governor Josh Shapiro at the Governor’s Residence. Photo by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Just hours after Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family began Passover with a Seder in his official residence, an arsonist torched the room where they had celebrated.
While authorities have not shared a motive to explain why the suspect they’ve arrested, 38-year-old Cody Balmer, allegedly scaled a security fence and set fire to the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania home where Shapiro, his wife and four children celebrated the holiday earlier that night, the Jewish governor connected the attack to the exodus from slavery in Egypt.
“When we were in the state dining room last night, gathered with community and family and friends, we told the story of Passover, and it’s a story of going from bondage, from slavery, into freedom, I think it’s both an important story both literally and figuratively to tell,” Shapiro said at a news conference on Sunday. “I refuse to be trapped by the bondage that someone attempts to put on me by attacking us as they did here last night. I refuse to let anyone who had evil intentions like that stop me from doing the work that I love.”
Shapiro and his family were asleep at around 2 a.m. when state troopers banged on the door to alert them to the fire and evacuate them, along with another family staying in the home.
Shapiro said the attack would not deter him from practicing his faith. “If he was trying to terrorize our family, our friends, the Jewish community who joined us for a Passover Seder in that room last night, hear me on this: We celebrated our faith last night proudly, and in a few hours we will celebrate our second Seder of Passover again, proudly. No one will deter me or my family or any Pennsylvanian from celebrating their faith openly and proudly.”
Shapiro and his family split their time between the official residence and their home in Abington, Pennsylvania.
Hours before the attack, Shapiro posted a photo of the Passover table, ready for Seder.
From the Shapiro family’s Seder table to yours, happy Passover and Chag Pesach Sameach! pic.twitter.com/2II1Id1W23
— Governor Josh Shapiro (@GovernorShapiro) April 12, 2025
Before his first Passover holiday in the governor’s mansion, Shapiro posted a video that showed preparations for the Seder, which he described as “so haimish,” using a Yiddish term for homey. The 14-minute video features Shapiro, his wife and their son Max with award-winning Israeli chef Michael Solomonov, the co-owner of several Philadelphia restaurants.
The Shapiros were hosting other Jews at Seder in the hours before the fire. The governor has made an effort to open his home to the Jewish community of Harrisburg. He had the city’s eruv — a thin wire that encircles an area permitting observant Jewish people to carry their belongings outside of their homes on Shabbat and Jewish festivals — extended to include the governor’s mansion. Shapiro requested this in the hopes of hosting Jewish community members of all backgrounds at functions held there.
The investigation into the fire is ongoing, and Shapiro said the Department of Justice, the FBI and the U.S. attorney’s office have all offered support.
The suspected arsonist, in what Shapiro called a “targeted” attack, faces charges of attempted murder, terrorism, aggravated arson and aggravated assault, law enforcement said.
Shapiro, who inaugurated his campaign for governor in 2022 with a video featuring his family’s Shabbat dinners, was a finalist for the vice presidential slot on the Democratic ticket last year. After Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz instead, some questioned whether Shapiro had been passed over because of antisemitism or over his stance on the Israel-Hamas war, which had caused critics to call him “Genocide Josh.” But he said he believed antisemitism played “no role” and that he was happy to remain in the governor’s spot, where he is popular. He is widely seen as a potential future presidential contender.
JTA contributed to this report.
