Pennsylvania Voters Retain Three Liberal Justices on State Supreme Court

Three liberal justices are projected to win 10 more years on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, according to The Associated Press. Their expected wins after Tuesday’s retention elections follows heavy investment from both Republican and Democratic groups in what are typically sleepy state judicial races.

Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty and David Wecht each retained their spots on the state’s high court, cementing its liberal 5-2 majority. Their reelection is a win for Democrats, since the body is anticipated to rule during the next decade on issues such as abortion access and voting rights.

“Tonight, folks across our Commonwealth sent a resounding message by voting to retain all three Supreme Court Justices who will continue to defend the rule of law, safeguard our elections, and protect our constitutional rights,” Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro wrote on X Tuesday night. “Here in the birthplace of democracy, the good people of Pennsylvania will always stand for freedom.”

The outcome is also expected to affect next year’s midterm elections and the 2028 presidential race. The court has determined several of the swing state’s most high-profile election disputes in recent years.

“Tonight, Pennsylvania delivered a message on behalf of the entire country: No matter how rich you are, and no matter how much power you think you might have, our courts are not for sale,” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said in a statement. “Tonight has proved that, at every level of government, Democrats are competing, winning, and building power on behalf of the American people.”

Tuesday’s election was the first statewide contest in Pennsylvania after the state swung for President Donald Trump in 2024. Republican-aligned groups sought to capitalize on this momentum by urging voters to reject the judges, who ran for retention without a party affiliation but were elected as Democrats in 2015.

Commonwealth Partners, part of a network funded by conservative billionaire and political donor Jeff Yass, distributed commercials, mailers and text messages asking Pennsylvania residents to vote “no” on the justices.

The Republican State Leadership Committee also spent about $500,000 on the race. A RSLC spokesperson told NOTUS in October that the committee considered the election crucial, given the court’s role in Pennsylvania’s congressional redistricting process.

The GOP-led campaign to oust the justices was nevertheless considered a long shot, as only one justice has ever failed a retention election for the high court in the history of the state.

But Democrats didn’t hold back, and they poured money into maintaining a court majority, outspending GOP groups nearly 4-to-1.

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee and the Democratic National Committee each announced six-figure investments in the state leading up to the election. Gov. Josh Shapiro — frequently mentioned in polls as a viable 2028 presidential candidate — also appeared in ads endorsing the justices.

“Tonight, Pennsylvanians sent a clear message to Republicans who are trying to take over the judiciary to keep themselves in power: you can’t escape accountability from the voters,” DLCC President Heather Williams said in a statement. “From protecting Pennsylvanians’ voices at the ballot box to securing their freedoms and opportunities, we are confident these justices will continue to stand up for working families throughout the rest of their terms.”

The Brennan Center for Justice estimated that candidates and outside groups together spent more than $9.1 million on television ads as of October 29 –– the most expensive retention election in Pennsylvania’s history.

State court races have been popular targets of national political attention of late. Earlier this year, liberal and conservative groups alike poured millions of dollars into a partisan Wisconsin Supreme Court contest in March. Democrats also secured a win in that election, which was seen as an early test of Trump’s state-level influence.

Though investments in Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court race did not quite match the $100 million spent in Wisconsin, Douglas Keith, a deputy director of the Brennan Center’s judiciary program, told NOTUS that both elections demonstrate a shift in election-season priorities.

“For a long time, judicial elections were a very quiet affair,” Keith said. “Today’s judicial elections just look much more like any other competitive statewide election and much less like the quaint elections we saw even a few cycles ago.”