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3 seats on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court 4 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 County results: Democrats: <50% 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% >90% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pennsylvania Supreme Court elections were held on November 3, 2015 to elect three justices to fill vacancies on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The seats were won by Kevin Dougherty, David Wecht, and Christine Donohue, all Democrats, resulting in a 5-2 Democratic majority. [1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Kevin M. Dougherty | 1,088,716 | 18.50 | |
| Democratic | David Wecht | 1,079,452 | 18.34 | |
| Democratic | Christine Donohue | 1,069,161 | 18.17 | |
| Republican | Judith F. Olson | 895,741 | 15.22 | |
| Republican | Michael George | 803,748 | 13.66 | |
| Republican | Anne Covey | 802,891 | 13.64 | |
| Independent Judicial Alliance | Paul P. Panepinto | 145,190 | 2.47 | |
| Total votes | 5,884,899 | 100 | ||
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania began in 1684 as the Provincial Court, and casual references to it as the "Supreme Court" of Pennsylvania were made official in 1722 upon its reorganization as an entity separate from the control of the royal governor.
The Pennsylvania Republican Party (PAGOP) is the affiliate of the Republican Party in the state of Pennsylvania. It is headquartered in Harrisburg.
After the 2000 census, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was divided into 19 congressional districts, decreasing from 21 due to reapportionment.
Pennsylvania has been considered a swing state throughout its entire history as it only voted for the nationwide loser on only 10 occasions. Meaning it has voted for the national winner 83% of the time, as of 2020. Although, it generally supported Republicans between the Civil War and New Deal eras, as it voted Republican in every election between 1860 and 1932, except for 1912, when the Republican vote was split. Even then, the state's strong Republican ties meant that it backed Republican-turned-Progressive Theodore Roosevelt. The state backed a Democrat in 1936 for the first time since 1856. Pennsylvania generally leaned Democratic since the 1990s, as it backed the Democratic presidential candidate in every election since 1992 except in 2016, when it was won by Republican candidate Donald Trump with a plurality.
Pennsylvania held statewide municipal elections on November 3, 2009, to fill a number of judicial positions and to allow judicial retention votes. The necessary primary elections were held on May 19, 2009.
Redistricting in Pennsylvania refers to the decennial process of redrawing state legislative and federal congressional districts in Pennsylvania.
George Joseph "Mike" Kelly Jr. is an American politician and businessman who has been a U.S. representative since 2011, currently representing Pennsylvania's 16th congressional district. The district, numbered as the 3rd district from 2011 to 2019, is based in Erie and stretches from the northwest corner of the state to the outer northern suburbs of Pittsburgh.
Robert Patrick Casey Jr. is an American lawyer and politician who is the senior United States senator from Pennsylvania, since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, Casey was the Pennsylvania Auditor General from 1997 to 2004 and the Pennsylvania Treasurer from 2004 to 2007. Since 2023, Casey has been the dean of the Pennsylvania Congressional delegation.
Kathleen Margaret Kane is an American former politician and lawyer who served as the 48th Attorney General of Pennsylvania from 2013 until her resignation in 2016 following her conviction for perjury, obstruction of justice, and related charges for illegal activities while she was attorney general. She was the first woman and first Democrat ever elected to the position.
David Norman Wecht is an American attorney and jurist, who has served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania since 2016. Prior to his election in 2015, Wecht had served as a judge of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania.
Kevin M. Dougherty is an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Before his election in 2015, Dougherty had served on the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia since 2001, serving as an administrative judge of the trial division.
Christine L. Donohue is an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Prior to her election to that court in 2015, she was an elected member of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, a seat she had held since 2008. She had also performed nearly three decades of service as a trial lawyer and litigator in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania held statewide elections on November 3, 2015, to fill judicial positions, to fill a vacancy in the Pennsylvania State Senate, to allow judicial retention votes, and to fill numerous county, local and municipal offices.
The 2020 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, as part of the 2020 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Pennsylvania voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, President Donald Trump, and running mate Vice President Mike Pence against Democratic Party nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his running mate California Senator Kamala Harris. Pennsylvania has 20 electoral votes in the Electoral College.
The 2018 Pennsylvania state elections took place on November 6, 2018. On that date, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania held elections for the following offices: Governor and Lieutenant Governor, U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, Pennsylvania State Senate, Pennsylvania House of Representatives, and various others. Primary elections took place on May 15, 2018.
In direct response to Pennsylvania Democratic Party v. Boockvar and the 2020 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania, the Donald Trump 2020 presidential campaign launched numerous lawsuits contesting the purview of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and the election processes of Pennsylvania. All of these have either been dismissed or dropped. The last two remaining cases were dismissed without comment by the Supreme Court on February 22, 2021. On April 19, 2021, more than five months after the November 3, 2020 election, the Supreme Court declined to hear the outstanding case brought by former Republican congressional candidate Jim Bognet, dismissing it without comment.
Pennsylvania held statewide elections on November 7, 2017 to fill judicial positions on the Supreme Court, Superior Court, and the Commonwealth Court, to allow judicial retention votes, and to fill numerous county, local and municipal offices.
The 2019 Pennsylvania elections was held on November 5, 2019 to fill judicial positions on the Superior Court, allow judicial retention votes, and fill numerous county, local and municipal offices, the most prominent being the Mayor of Philadelphia.
The 2021 Pennsylvania elections were held on November 2, 2021, to fill judicial positions on the Supreme Court, Superior Court, and Commonwealth Court, to allow judicial retention votes, and to fill numerous county, local and municipal offices.
The 2023 Pennsylvania elections took place on November 7, 2023, to fill judicial positions, allow judicial retention votes, and fill numerous county, local and municipal offices, the most prominent being the Mayor of Philadelphia. The necessary primary elections were held on May 16, 2023. In addition, special elections for legislative vacancies could be held at various times in 2023.
