On Nov. 4, 2025, Pennsylvania voters cast their ballots to decide whether or not to retain justices Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty, and David Wecht. These three justices must keep their seats to maintain the 5-2 Democratic majority on the state’s Supreme Court. If voters vote ‘yes’ on their ballots, the three justices will remain in office. If they vote ‘no,’ the justices will be removed. Afterward, Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro and the Republican-controlled Senate will appoint and approve an interim judge until the next municipal elections in 2027, giving Republicans an opportunity to gain a Supreme Court majority if they win two of the three seats.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the oldest court in the United States, established in 1722, makes final decisions that apply to the entire state, hears cases of profound public importance, and takes up appeals from the Superior and Commonwealth Courts. It also has original jurisdiction over cases involving due process, the mandatory duty of public officials, and whether an official is entitled to assume office.
These three judges have presided over numerous substantial legal rulings, often in favor of voting rights, since their appointments as justices in 2015. They extended mail-in voting deadlines during the COVID-19 pandemic. They ruled against Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election, requiring counties to count provisional ballots that were not initially counted because voters made insignificant errors on their ballots, and blocked partisan gerrymandered maps.
The Pennsylvania Bar Association has endorsed all three candidates and encouraged voters to cast their votes as a unanimous “yes.”
On the sidelines, other crucial judicial elections are also being held. Two more retention elections will occur, with two Democratic Superior Court Justices, Alice Dubow and Michael Wojkick, facing retention elections of their own. The Superior Court is one of Pennsylvania’s two appellate courts. It hears appeals from the Court of Common Pleas in family law, wills, property, and business disputes. Often, decisions in the superior court, unless of profound importance to the Supreme Court, are final. Currently, the superior court has an 8-6 Democratic majority, meaning these elections will determine whether the Democratic majority remains.
Finally, the Commonwealth Court, which decides cases brought against the government, primarily handles state and local government issues, is holding a partisan debate between Democrat Stella Tsai and Republican Matthew Wolford. Both candidates have considerable qualifications and have been endorsed by various important legal NGOs.
Wolford pledged to fight for private property rights, businesses, and deregulation, while also stating that he would avoid legislating from the bench, a stance increasingly prevalent in highly polarized countries where the judiciary takes on a more activist role in deciding matters that should be within the legislature’s jurisdiction. Given that Pennsylvania is a swing state with a Republican-controlled Senate and a Democratic-controlled House, the choice between an activist court and a cautious court is crucial.
Contrarily, while Tsai hasn’t endorsed any particular legal position, she has pledged to protect women’s reproductive rights, immigrant rights, and the rights of individual citizens against government overreach. This will make her an ardent opponent of the Trump administration.
Both judges have made it clear they have very real political biases, indicating where they’d rule on issues: Wolford is a cautious pro-business, pro-deregulation candidate, and Tsai is a pro-civil rights, pro-reproductive rights candidate. This election will also have profound political implications. Currently, the Commonwealth Court has a 5-3 Republican majority. This election will decide the ninth seat. While it may not alter the court’s composition, it could lead to more impartial and less partisan decisions if Tsai wins, depending on her rulings. However, note that Wolford has pledged to exercise his judicial powers with caution.
These three elections, which Pennsylvania voters will decide on in November, will determine majorities in the State Supreme and Superior Courts, and decide a contested partisan election in the Commonwealth Court, which is why this low-interest election is so high-stakes.
