Former Pennsylvania Treasurer Rob McCord pleaded guilty in a Harrisburg courtroom to two federal counts of attempted extortion.
McCord, 55, of Bryn Mawr, admitted that he use his office to try to bully state contractors into donating money when he ran for governor last year. McCord lost the Democratic gubernatorial primary to current Gov. Tom Wolf.
U.S. District Judge John Jones III scheduled a June 29 pre-sentencing hearing. The maximum penalty for each count is 20 years' imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.
In court, McCord admitted trying to use his position as treasurer to threaten a Philadelphia-based law firm and a western Pennsylvania-based property management firm into donating a satisfactory amount of money to his campaign last spring.
McCord, a former venture capitalist, was elected treasurer in 2008 and 2012. In a video that his legal team released on Jan. 30, McCord said he "stepped over the line" by reminding contractors that he could make things difficult for them.
McCord did not answer reporters' questions as he left the courthouse Tuesday.
Christopher Craig, chief counsel for the treasurer's office, will run the office until Wolf nominates a permanent successor.
