The mayor of Scranton, Paige Cognetti, is receiving sharp criticism from city council members and her own constituents for being absent from council meetings as she runs for the House of Representatives. Cognetti, the Democratic nominee in Pennsylvania's Eighth Congressional District, has been accused of neglecting her duties as mayor while pursuing her congressional campaign.
Criticism Over Absence and Dealings with Fidelity
Scranton resident Rik Little used a public comment period during a July 16 council meeting to slam Cognetti over her continued failure to attend municipal government proceedings, records show. "We got a mayor who's not here," Little said. "The mayor should be here every week." Councilman Sean McAndrew agreed, saying during the meeting that "the only thing [he knows] about the mayor's five-year outlook is she doesn't plan to be here. She plans to be in Congress."
The criticism came as the council debated a $1.9 million deal between Scranton and Fidelity D&D Bancorp, the holding company for the Pennsylvania-based Fidelity Bank, that would have the city purchase the bank's old headquarters to use as a municipal building. Cognetti added the deal to the city's budget in November 2025, and an outgoing council voted 3-2 to authorize the purchase and fund a 10 percent deposit the following month.
Cognetti's handling of the deal is at odds with the image she has presented while running to unseat Republican incumbent Rob Bresnahan. She says she's running to "bring reform, transparency, and government accountability" to Northeastern Pennsylvania, "a place sadly known for public corruption." However, her relationship with Fidelity has raised questions about her commitment to transparency and accountability.
In November 2024, Cognetti helped secure a $5 million grant from Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro to renovate Fidelity's new headquarters in downtown Scranton. Months later, in April 2025, all nine members of Fidelity's board contributed $1,500 to Cognetti's mayoral campaign, records show. This has led to accusations of self-dealing and a conflict of interest.