HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) â?? The first declared candidate in the 2014 election for Pennsylvania governor is poised to make his announcement.

Democrat John Hanger, a longtime state official and environmentalist, has scheduled news conferences in Philadelphia and Harrisburg on Wednesday and in Pittsburgh on Thursday.

Several other Democrats are interested in or considering seeking the party's nomination to contest Republican Gov. Tom Corbett's planned re-election bid in a campaign nearly two years away.

Businessmen Tom Wolf of York and Tom Knox of Philadelphia have signaled strong interest in running and still other prospective candidates refuse to rule out campaigns.

The 55-year-old Hanger, a Harrisburg lawyer, says his campaign will focus on education, jobs, energy and the environment.


Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.