Shapiro and Kennedy got into a back-and-forth posting debate on X this week following the governor’s high-profile press conference. On Aug. 26, Shapiro accused Kennedy of spreading misinformation that the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine contains aborted fetal material.

But the conflict has led to Make America Healthy Again advocates criticizing Shapiro’s handling of the outbreak, including by questioning whether the two individuals actually died as a result of measles infections.

Following Shapiro’s press conference, the Lancaster County coroner reported that one of the deaths was of a newborn infant from a ruptured spleen shortly after birth. The infant did test positive for measles upon postmortem, but the coroner said the infection was not the cause of the damage to the child’s spleen. The Pennsylvania Department of Health has not shared any information about the second reported measles-associated death, other than that the individual was not vaccinated.

After an explosion of online controversy surrounding the announcement, Shapiro said at a press conference on Friday that he believes the discussion about vaccines should not take place online.

“I don’t think it serves the interest of public health or slows the spread of this outbreak for me to get into a back-and-forth about conspiracy theories that are showing up online,” Shapiro said. “I got a serious job to do for the people of Pennsylvania.”

Daniel Fee, a Democratic political strategist based in Philadelphia, told the Washington Examiner that Shapiro “didn’t pick a fight” with Kennedy or Republicans about the issue and the criticism betrays GOP concerns that Shapiro could be a force to reckon with in 2028.

“The response, I think, tells you both the concern that current leaders have about the issue, but also about Gov. Shapiro more generally,” he said.

Shapiro’s 2028 plans

The measles outbreak that has thrust Shapiro into the national spotlight comes as the Pennsylvania Democrat has been laying the groundwork to compete in what is likely to be a crowded 2028 political field.

In July, Shapiro dumped $3.3 million in a coordinated campaign to help downballot Democrats at the federal level as well as win a governing trifecta in the state capitol, Harrisburg, which will help him achieve more liberal agenda items before 2028.

According to a July Quinnipiac Poll, Shapiro is 13 percentage points ahead of his Republican opponent for the governorship, state Treasurer Stacy Garrity. Shapiro also has a $50 million war chest and has more than 30 times as much cash on hand as his GOP rival, both signals of his ability to fundraise in a purple state.

But MAHA activists on social media are saying Shapiro went too far in citing the Lancaster County deaths, saying he exploited the situation for political gain.

Calley Means, a White House health policy adviser and a close ally of Kennedy, took to X to call Shapiro “a spineless, rudderless, not-ready-for-prime time charlatan.”

“Governor Shapiro knew the details of this tragic death had nothing to do with measles, yet he rushed to Lancaster and convened a press conference to LIE in order to score political points,” Means said on X. “This is evil.”

Dr. Vinay Prasad, President Donald Trump’s former head of the vaccine division at the Food and Drug Administration, criticized Shapiro’s measles response via blog post. Prasad advised Shapiro to correct the record immediately, saying he should not have relied on anecdotes, which “can bite us in the ass,” and instead stressed the statistic that measles kills roughly 1 in 1,000 infected children.

 “Governor if your goal is not to be dragged down by the extreme wing of your party— remember that also applies to public health, which is one and the same,” Prasad wrote. 

Fee told the Washington Examiner the pushback against Shapiro from Republicans proves they are concerned about him as a leader in the Democratic Party and on public health issues.

“If people were worried that Josh Shapiro didn’t have any influence or didn’t have a voice, does this administration respond to them?” Fee said. “They haven’t historically, like, unless they’ve really hit a sore spot.”

HHS did not respond to multiple requests for comment from the Washington Examiner regarding the measles outbreak and whether Kennedy would be visiting Pennsylvania, as he did for the children who died from measles in Texas last year.

Vaccines, public health, and 2028

Democrats and Republicans who spoke to the Washington Examiner about the situation in Pennsylvania said the vaccine issue will be important not only for voters heading into the November midterm elections but also when choosing a candidate for the open 2028 presidential primaries. 

Shaughnessy Naughton, president of the Democrat-led PAC 314 Action, told the Washington Examiner that elected officials “at the most basic level should be doing what we know keeps Americans safe,” including supporting vaccines.

“I think calling out misinformation and disinformation that is putting American lives at risk is something that we should expect from our elected leaders,” Naughton said.

Polling from 314 Action earlier this month in response to Trump’s executive order calling on states to shrink the childhood vaccine schedule found that 76% of voters support routine childhood vaccinations.

Last year, a different survey from the Trumpworld pollster FabrizoWard found 86% of voters, regardless of party, supported the MMR vaccine. That included 77% of Republicans, 97% of Democrats, and 85% of swing voters.

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Fee said the “defenestration of the health and public health safety systems will and should be an issue” for the next presidential cycle and could be a liability for the GOP.

“A disrespect of science is a problem for Republicans for sure,” Fee said. “Whether it’s food safety or patient safety or child safety, these have real impacts on people.”