photo by Kriston Jae Bethel
2025 Election Preview: PA Supreme Court Retention
Simply put, it’s one of the most-closely watched contests of the 2025 election cycle in the country. Will three Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices be retained for another 10-year term on the bench? Yes or no.
In the Commonwealth, judges at every statewide level – Supreme, Superior, and Commonwealth – must stand before voters every 10 years for retention. Only once in state history has a statewide judge ever lost a retention vote – Supreme Court justice Russell Nigro in 2005.
For Democrats Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty, and David Wecht, the challenge of earning another 10-year spot on the state’s highest court may be the most difficult that any sitting justice has had to face.
The trio was elected to the Court in 2015 and are three-fifths of a 5-2 Democratic majority on the bench. It is important to note that the three were elected as Democrats, but face retention without party affiliation next to their name on the retention ballot.
During the last decade, Donohue, Dougherty and Wecht have overseen and intervened in the state’s congressional and legislative redistricting; allowed a case challenging the state’s education funding system to go to trial; upheld COVID-19 mediation efforts; and backstopped the state’s voting laws against a slew of conservative challenges, most notably from Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign.
And conservatives are trying to make the most of their opportunity to punch back.
Spending in the race is headed north of the $15 million mark, including $2 million from Pennsylvania’s richest man, Jeffrey Yass. Democrats have responded by outspending GOP interests by a nearly 4-to-1 count in an effort to blunt Republican flyers and commercials.
President Donald Trump has even made his call on the vote, telling Pennsylvanians that they “can bring back the Rule of Law, and stand up for the Constitution” by voting “NO, NO, NO” on “Liberal Justices Donohue, Doughertym and Wecht.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has also weighed in, saying “we have the opportunity to stand up for our fundamental freedoms by voting YES to retain our Supreme Court Justices.”
Turnout is not expected to be high in a municipal election year. While nearly 7-in-10 Pennsylvanians cast ballots in the 2024 presidential election, only 25-30% are expected to do the same in an election that does not have the same spice.
That is one problem that the trio faces during the retention process.
A second concern is that campaigning can be difficult for judges seeking retention because the Code of Judicial Conduct sets strict rules on what they can do, in order to maintain their impartiality. While they are allowed to talk about their approach to the law, they’re barred from discussing specific cases before them, or definitively saying how’d they rule on any given topic.
And finally, the question of retaining the justices are located on the reverse side of the 67 county ballots and election officials note that voters have a habit of not turning the ballot over to see “page 2.”
“Municipal elections like this year’s are important because this is when voters choose the local officials who make decisions that impact their day-to-day lives,” Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt said.
Christine Donohue
A native of Schuylkill County who came to Pittsburgh for law school, Donohue may be best known as the author of a 2024 decision suggesting there may be a right to abortion under the state Constitution, and that the state’s Medicaid program will have to cover the procedure. (The matter is now back before a lower court.) While winning retention ordinarily entitles a judge to a 10-year term, Donohue will have to step down in 2027, when she reaches the mandatory retirement age of 75.
Place of residence: Allegheny County
Education: B.A., East Stroudsburg University, J.D., University School of Law
Current occupation: Supreme Court Justice
Related experience: Pennsylvania Superior Court Judge, member and chair of state Judicial Conduct Board, judge on Court of Judicial Discipline, attorney in private practice for 27 years
Supporters/endorsements: Recommended for retention by state Bar Association, and backed by trial lawyers’ groups, labor unions, and a number of progressive and Democratic leaders and organizations.
Links: Website | Facebook | X/Twitter | Instagram | Bluesky
Fundraising (reported as of 10/20/25):
Total raised: $798,722.13 (plus $1,111,672.05 in donated media buys and other support from “Vote Yes for Fair and Independent Courts,” a pro-retention group backed by trial lawyers, unions, and other supporters)
Total spent: $628,879.61
Kevin Dougherty
Of the three justices up for retention, Dougherty is the only one from outside Allegheny County, and the only one who didn’t serve on an appeals court first, coming to the Supreme Court straight from the Court of Common Pleas. He’s long shown an interest in the nexus between the justice system and behavioral health issues, and notable recent rulings include a case where he upheld the right of a homeowner to post anti-racist signs directed at a neighbor. Opponents of his retention have sought to capitalize on the legal travails of his brother, a former leader in a powerful Philadelphia union who has been convicted of bribery and embezzlement.
Place of residence: Philadelphia County
Education: B.A. Temple University, J.D. Antioch School of Law
Current occupation: Supreme Court Justice
Related experience: Former assistant district attorney and Common Pleas Judge in Philadelphia County, where he was a supervising and administration judge in the family and trial divisions. Has also worked in private practice.
Supporters/endorsements: Recommended for retention by the state Bar Association, and backed by trial lawyers’ groups, labor unions, and a number of progressive and Democratic leaders and organizations.
Links: Website | Facebook | X/Twitter | Instagram | Bluesky
Fundraising (reported as of 10/20/25):
Total raised: $2,249,282.86 (plus $1,482,761.74 in donated media buys and other support from an electrical workers’ union, the state Democratic Party and “Vote Yes for Fair and Independent Courts,” a pro-retention group backed by trial lawyers, unions, and other supporters)
Total spent: $1,783,937.51
David Wecht
Wecht may have once been best known as the son of Allegheny County coroner and chief medical examiner Dr. Cyril H. Wecht, whose pronouncements on the death of such figures as John F. Kennedy conferred national celebrity. But after ascending from county politics, Wecht has established a reputation of his own on the state’s highest court. While noted for his ability to write a sharp dissent, Wecht has also forged some landmark majority decisions, including a decision that upheld the city of Pittsburgh’s paid sick-leave law.
Place of residence: Allegheny County
Education: B.A. Yale College, J.D. Yale School of Law
Current occupation: State Supreme Court Justice
Related experience: Previously served as a Superior Court Judge, and Common Pleas Court judge in Allegheny County. Previously elected as Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans Court in Allegheny County. Former law partner and associate in private practice, and has held a number of college teaching positions.
Supporters/endorsements: Recommended for retention by the state Bar Association, and backed by trial lawyers’ groups, labor unions, and a number of progressive and Democratic leaders and organizations.
Links: Website | Facebook | X/Twitter | Instagram | Bluesky
Fundraising (reported as of 10/20/25):
Total raised: $1,135,165.63 (plus $650.11 raised previously, and (plus $1,436,404.92 in donated media buys and other support from the state Democratic Party and “Vote Yes for Fair and Independent Courts,” a pro-retention group backed by trial lawyers, unions, and other supporters)
Total spent: $600,058.17
