Pennsylvanians voted to maintain the state Supreme Court’s partisan balance of five Democrats and two Republicans by retaining three Democratic justices on Tuesday.
The justices — Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty and David Wecht — all won their first elections to the bench in 2015. On Tuesday, they each faced a retention election, where voters decided whether to keep each of them on the court. Republicans, backed with millions in spending from groups affiliated with local billionaire Jeffrey Yass, had hoped to oust the three in a bid to take control of the state’s top court ahead of the 2028 presidential election.
Under Democratic control, the state Supreme Court has ruled in favor of voting and abortion rights, struck down a GOP congressional gerrymander and rejected President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election. By retaining their majority on the court through the 2028 presidential election, Democrats will be able to beat back any machinations to interfere with elections in 2026 or 2028.
It is not a surprise that Pennsylvanians chose to retain the three justices. Only one justice has lost a retention election since they were adopted by the state in 1968. In fact, no justice won a retention by less than 20 points in those nearly 60 years.
