Background
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania currently has a 5-2 Democratic majority. [2] The court has been Democratic-controlled since 2015, when Donohue, Dougherty, and Wecht won election to their seats. [3]
Had voters chosen not to retain any of the justices, Governor Josh Shapiro could have appointed a temporary replacement until 2027 — with approval from two-thirds of the Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate — when an election would have be held for a permanent replacement. [4] If all three justices were not retained and the Senate did not approve Shapiro's nominees, the court would be split with two Democrats and two Republicans, which the Philadelphia Inquirer claimed could leave the court "unlikely to reach majority decisions and could weaken the voice of Pennsylvania's top court going into the 2028 presidential election, when the swing state could decide the next president yet again." [5]
Since retention elections were established in 1968, only one Pennsylvania justice, Russell Nigro in 2005, has not been retained. [6]
Campaign
The justices themselves were not permitted to campaign; however, they engaged in a speaking tour throughout the state where they asserted that while the law requires partisan elections, they exercise their judicial power without any partisan bias. [7] The Philadelphia Inquirer said that over $14 million had been raised in support of retention, [8] while the Brennan Center for Justice estimated that $7.5 million has been spent by liberal political action committees on TV ads in support of a 'Yes' vote to "protect elections and preserve abortion rights". They also claimed that the race was the second most expensive retention election in U.S. history. [9] [10]
Deborah Gross, executive director of the non-profit Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts, claimed that the significant spending 'perverts the intent of the retention process' by focusing on party affiliation rather than the justices' records. Talking to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star , Gross said, “[i]f someone is not doing their job properly, if they're not showing up for court, if they're doing bad acts, if they have judicial conduct issues. Those are reasons why someone should not be retained.” [11]
The Democratic National Committee announced a "six-figure investment" into the Pennsylvania Democratic Party to help support retaining the 3 judges, [12] with DNC Chair Ken Martin issuing a statement saying that "[t]he Pennsylvania Supreme Court is on the frontlines of decisions related to voting rights, redistricting, abortion protections" and that "[t]he stakes couldn't be higher." [12]
The state and national chapters of the ACLU spent $500,000 on a mail campaign to inform voters about the race “and what it means for their civil rights and civil liberties.” The organization's website did not make an explicit case for or against retaining any of the judges. [13]
Conservative activist Scott Presler told Fox News that his PAC, Early Vote Action, were targeting Bucks County — which voted Republican for the first time in almost four decades — by sending 100,000 text messages as part of a campaign that recognizes Charlie Kirk’s birthday. Presler also stated that the group are producing stickers that say 'I voted in honor of Charlie' with a "really classy photo" of Kirk with his hands together in prayer. [14] Bucks County chose to retain all 3 justices by a 30-point margin. [1]
Multiple PACs affiliated with Republican businessman Matthew Brouillette and funded almost entirely by billionaire Jeff Yass — a registered Libertarian — spent hundreds of thousands on social media ads, mailers, and text messages opposing retaining all 3 judges, telling voters they should “term limit the woke Democrat Pennsylvania Supreme Court.” [15]
Mailer controversy
The Commonwealth Leaders Fund, a Yass-affiliated PAC, was criticized by the advocacy group Fair Districts PA after releasing a mailer claiming that the “liberal Supreme Court gerrymandered our congressional districts to help Democrats win”. The mailer also featured an outdated image of 2 congressional districts from a map that was drawn up by the Republican-controlled state legislature in 2011 and later overturned for partisan gerrymandering that disproportionately benefitted the Republican Party. [15] [16]
After the mailer controversy was publicized, Pennsylvania Democratic Party chair Eugene DePasquale issued a statement condemning “MAGA billionaires” for funnelling money into the election. [17] In late September, the Pennsylvania Working Families Party organized a protest outside Susquehanna International Group, a financial trading company founded by Jeff Yass, criticizing his involvement in the campaign and urging passers-by to "Vote ‘Yes’, not Yass". [17]
The League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania declined to endorse for or against retention, though they criticized the leading 'No' campaign PACs for misleading voters by including inaccurate information on their campaign mailers. [18] In 2017, the group argued in a lawsuit that Republican-gerrymandered maps violate the state constitution’s guarantee of free and fair elections. The state Supreme Court, which included the 3 justices up for retention, ruled in favor of the claim. [9]
Election logistics
Republican activists and politicians urged voters to cast mail-in ballots before election day, despite Donald Trump's repeated support for a ban on mail-in voting. [19] The Pennsylvania Republican Party encouraged voters to request an absentee ballot, posting on X (formerly Twitter) that "if there is even a 1% chance that you might miss the 2025 Election, sign up for a mail-in ballot today! It's quick and easy!" [19]
Increased Republican support for mail-in ballots was also seen in the New Jersey gubernatorial election, with Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli boasting that "more Republicans [have] return[ed] vote-by-mail ballots than ever before." [20] Similarly, the California Republican Party urged the use mail-in ballots to vote against Proposition 50, a ballot measure that would redraw the state's congressional districts. [19]
Chester County provisional ballots
On election day, NBC News reported that independent and unaffiliated voters in Chester County were forced to cast provisional ballots after poll books listing only Republicans and Democrats were delivered to polling sites, meaning that independent voters didn't appear as registered voters, and their ballots were only counted after election officials were able to prove their eligibility. [21] [22]
Chester County posted on social media that “supplemental poll books” were sent out to 230 polling sites, allowing voters to vote normally throughout the afternoon and evening. [21] A judge later extended polling hours in the county until 10pm rather than 8pm to allow independents to cast non-provisional ballots. [23]
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