| Michael Zabel | |
| State House: | Pennsylvania |
| District: | 163rd |
| Predecessor: | Jamie Santora |
| Successor: | Heather Boyd |
| Birth Date: | 16 January 1978 |
| Party: | Democratic |
| Alma Mater: | Temple University (MA, JD) |
Michael Zabel (born January 16, 1978) is an American politician. He served as a Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 163rd district from 2019 to 2023.
Zabel defeated Jamie Santora in the 163rd district in 2018, receiving 15,000 votes.[1]
In 2023, a union lobbyist accused Zabel of sexual harassment, filing a complaint with the House Ethics Committee.[2] After the first accusation, two more allegations emerged against Zabel in the following days. Previously in 2018, Zabel's campaign manager accused him of inappropriately touching her. At the time, she reported it to Democratic party leaders, but did not go public until the allegations from the lobbyist were made. The same day the campaign manager's allegations were made public, an article on a conservative news site relayed a story from an anonymous female lawmaker who said she was followed to her car by Zabel after rejecting his advances.[3] [4] The lawmaker later identified herself as State Representative Abby Major.[5] Zabel resisted calls to resign because of the allegations, and said he would seek treatment for his "illness."[6] He later reversed his earlier statement and announced he would resign from office effective March 16, 2023.[7]
He is married to Lauren Zabel and has two children. They live in the Drexel Hill neighborhood of Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania.[8]