(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – A sign on a door at The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is pictured at the Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., Feb. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, PENNSYLVANIA (AP) — Control of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court hangs in the balance in statewide elections next week, when voters will cast ballots on judges for the state’s three highest courts. Voters across the commonwealth will also vote in municipal elections, including high-profile races in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.
State Supreme Court Justices Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty and David Wecht – all Democrats – will appear on the Nov. 4 ballot in a retention election, where voters will decide whether to award the sitting jurists new terms on the high court. Terms are 10 years, although Donohue must retire in 2027 when she reaches the mandated retirement age of 75. While retention elections are often a quiet affair in Pennsylvania, this year’s campaign has been heavily shaped by party politics.
Democrats hold a 5-2 majority on the state Supreme Court, but Republicans have mounted a campaign to oust Donohue, Dougherty and Wecht. If voters decide not to retain a justice for another term, Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro could appoint a temporary replacement, subject to confirmation by the Republican-controlled state Senate. A deadlock in the confirmation process could result in a court tied at 2-2 if voters oust all three justices this year. An election to fill any vacant seats for full 10-year terms would be held in 2027.
The last state Supreme Court retention election was in 2017. The Republican justice on the ballot that year was retained with 68% of the vote, while the Democratic justice was retained with 71% of the vote.
Voters will also decide races for other state courts, including the state Superior Court and Commonwealth Court, the two statewide appellate courts a step below the state Supreme Court.
In the race for Pittsburgh mayor, Democratic Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor and Republican Tony Moreno are running to replace outgoing Democratic incumbent Ed Gainey. O’Connor, a former member of the Pittsburgh City Council and son of the late Mayor Bob O’Connor, defeated Gainey in the May primary. Moreno, a former police officer, was the 2021 Republican mayoral nominee who lost to Gainey in the general election.
In Philadelphia, Democrat Larry Krasner seeks a third term as district attorney against former Philadelphia Municipal Court Judge Pat Dugan. Dugan stepped down midway through his third term in 2024 to mount a challenge against Krasner for the Democratic nomination. Krasner defeated Dugan in the May primary, but Dugan switched parties in August to run in the general election as a Republican.
Democrats have won recent general elections in both Pittsburgh and Philadelphia by wide margins. Gainey defeated Moreno in the 2021 Pittsburgh mayoral race with about 71% of the vote. In Philadelphia, Krasner won reelection to a second term in 2021 with about 72% of the vote.
The Associated Press does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow the trailing candidates to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.
Pennsylvania requires an automatic recount for statewide races with a vote margin of 0.5 percentage points or less. For non-statewide races, voters may petition an individual county board of elections or the courts to order a recount. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is eligible for a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.
Here’s a look at what to expect on Nov. 4:
When do polls close?
Polls close at 8 p.m. ET.
What’s on the ballot?
The AP will provide vote results and declare winners in the retention elections for Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Superior Court and Commonwealth Court, and the general elections for Superior Court, Commonwealth Court, Pittsburgh mayor, Philadelphia district attorney and Philadelphia controller.
Who gets to vote?
Any voter registered in Pennsylvania may participate in the statewide general elections. Voters registered in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh may participate in the general elections in their city.
What do turnout and advance vote look like
As of Oct. 6, there were about 3.8 million Democrats and 3.6 million Republicans registered in Pennsylvania. In Allegheny County, home to Pittsburgh, Democrats comprised nearly 55% of the county’s 912,000 registered voters, while Republicans comprised about 29%. Democrats made up about 72% of Philadelphia’s roughly 1.1 million registered voters. Republicans made up about 12%.
Nearly 71,000 people voted in the 2021 general election for Pittsburgh mayor, which was about 31% of registered voters at the time. Mail ballots made up about 35% of votes cast. Roughly 230,000 people voted in the Philadelphia municipal general election that year, or about 22% of registered voters. About 32% of the vote was from mail ballots.
About 3.1 million votes were cast in the 2023 state Supreme Court general election, or roughly 36% of registered voters at the time. Mail votes comprised about 26% of the total votes cast.
As of Monday, more than 571,000 of the 1.1 million absentee ballots requested statewide had already been cast. About 67% of these votes came from Democrats and about 25% were from Republicans. See the AP Early Vote Tracker for the latest update.
In Pittsburgh, more than 15,000 pre-Election Day votes had been cast as of Oct. 10. About 87% of these votes came from Democrats and about 8% from Republicans.
How long does vote counting usually take?
In the 2024 presidential election, the AP first reported results from Pennsylvania at 8 p.m. ET in Allegheny County just as polls closed. The first results in Philadelphia were reported at 8:08 p.m. ET. By noon ET the next day, nearly 97% of the total statewide vote had been tabulated.
Vote tabulation ended for the night in Allegheny County at 12:08 a.m. ET with about 97% of the vote counted and in Philadelphia at 1:56 a.m. ET with about 93% of the vote counted.
Are we there yet?
As of Nov. 4, there will be 364 days until the 2026 midterm elections and 1,099 days until the 2028 general election.
