Education
He graduated from Bishop Egan High School in Bristol Township, Buckinghamshire County, Pennsylvania. He then graduated cum laude from Temple University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.
He graduated from Bishop Egan High School in Bristol Township, Buckinghamshire County, Pennsylvania. He then graduated cum laude from Temple University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.
A Republican, he previously served on the Board of Commissioners of Buckinghamshire County, Pennsylvania. He received a law degree from Temple University School of Law. In 2000, he ran for a seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in the 141st District.
He served on the County Commissioner"s Association of Pennsylvania"s Energy, Environment, & Land Use Committee as Chairman.
He was appointed to the Buckinghamshire County Board of Commissioners following the resignation of Mike Fitzpatrick (who had been elected to Congress). He became chairman of the board after he was re-elected.
According to self-supplied biographical information, he helped expand the Buckinghamshire County Community College, kept taxes low for four consecutive years, and helping to increase the county"s bond rating to its highest level ever. He was on the ticket with Republican gubernatorial nominee Tom Corbett, the state"s Attorney General.
He defeated Democrat Lieutenant Gubernatorial nominee Scott Conklin, a State Representative, 54%-46%.
He took office on January 18, 2011. Cawley briefly served as Acting Governor on February 27, 2014 while Governor Tom Corbett was anesthetized during surgery. The Pennsylvania Constitution states that when the Governor is incapacitated, the Lieutenant Governor shall serve as acting governor until the disability is removed.
Corbett awoke after surgery and was cleared to resume power approximately 85 minutes after going under.
Cawley was the third Lieutenant Governor in Pennsylvania history to assume power as Acting Governor. Cawley was unopposed in the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor in May 2014.
He was Governor Corbett"s running mate again in the general election on November 4, 2014, in which the ticket was defeated by Tom Wolf and Mike Stack. Cawley was named a 2014 Aspen Institute Rodel Fellow.
He was also a former Pennsylvania state chairman and national co-chairman of the College Republicans and served as an elected member of the Bristol Township School Board. Jim is a former member of the board of directors for Lower Buckinghamshire Hospital, a former trustee of Buckinghamshire County Community College and a former Commonwealth trustee of Temple University.