With less than a month to go before Election Day, Pennsylvania finds itself at the center of a judicial showdown that is drawing attention far beyond state lines. The 2025 Pennsylvania Supreme Court retention races, typically sleepy affairs, have become a lightning rod for national political forces, major donors, and advocacy groups from both sides of the aisle. At stake: whether three Democratic justices—Kevin Dougherty, David N. Wecht, and Christine Donohue—will keep their seats on a court that has shaped pivotal rulings on abortion, voting rights, redistricting, and more.
According to the Associated Press, Pennsylvania voters will decide in November whether these three justices should remain for another 10-year term. The outcome could alter the court’s ideological balance, which currently favors Democrats five to two. This balance has proved critical in recent years for decisions impacting everything from mail-in voting to legislative maps and public health powers. As CNN reported, flipping the court could have “dramatic implications for future rulings on such contentious issues, particularly in a state with electoral margins as narrow as Pennsylvania.”
The stakes are high, and the campaigns have the war chests to match. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced a six-figure investment into the Pennsylvania State Party on October 10, 2025, specifically to support on-the-ground voter contact efforts for these retention races. The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee also contributed $100,000 to an allied group, as detailed by the Associated Press. This level of spending is unusual for judicial retention votes, which are typically low-key and overlooked by the general electorate.
But 2025 is anything but typical. A coordinated effort by conservative activists and political donors has brought rare visibility to this off-year vote, arguing that the court has overstepped its authority on issues like mail-in voting, redistricting, and pandemic mandates. “The same billionaires who’ve bankrolled anti-abortion politicians are now coming after Pennsylvanians’ rights in this election,” Nicole Chung, Pennsylvania Regional Campaigns Director of Planned Parenthood Votes, told The Keystone. “The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is our last line of defense in the fight to protect access to abortion and other essential health care.”
Progressive and pro-democracy groups have responded with their own outreach efforts, urging voters to vote “yes” across the board to retain the justices. As ABC News highlighted, the campaign has drawn attention from across the political spectrum amid speculation about the court’s possible role in the 2028 presidential election. “This is the most pivotal judicial retention in our state’s history. MAGA billionaires are trying to buy Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court, and if they are successful, Pennsylvania’s reproductive rights, voting rights, and workers’ rights will all be at risk,” said Eugene DePasquale, chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, in a statement to ABC News. “For the people that thought the Wisconsin Supreme Court race earlier this year was important, this race is that, but on steroids.”
Physicians from across Pennsylvania have also entered the fray, warning that the outcome of the vote could alter the future of reproductive health care in the state. According to WHYY, these doctors convened on October 9, 2025, to stress the risks to abortion rights if the court’s composition changes. The court recently ruled on cases involving abortion funding and access, including a 2024 decision authored by Justice Christine Donohue that found a 1982 law banning Medicaid funds for abortion violated the state’s Equal Rights Amendment. That case is still pending in lower courts and could return to the Supreme Court, underscoring just how immediate the impact of these retention votes could be.
The mechanics of the retention race are straightforward, but the political implications are anything but. Rather than choosing between candidates, voters are presented with a simple “yes” or “no” for each justice: Should this justice be retained for another 10-year term on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court? Since the system was adopted in 1968, only one statewide judge—Justice Russell Nigro in 2005—has ever been voted out, according to WHYY. If any or all of the three justices are ousted, Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro would nominate replacements, but those nominees would need confirmation from the Republican-controlled state Senate. A deadlock could leave seats open until the next judicial election in 2027, potentially stalling or disrupting major decisions by the court.
Who are the justices at the center of this political storm? Justice Kevin Dougherty, a Philadelphia native, was elected to the Supreme Court in 2015 and has focused on mental health and accessibility in the judicial system. He led initiatives to create sensory-friendly courtrooms and established the Office of Behavioral Health within Pennsylvania’s courts. Dougherty has authored decisions protecting parental rights for LGBTQ families, upholding city restrictions on gun ranges, and allowing prosecution of police misconduct. The Pennsylvania Bar Association praised him as “well prepared,” “smart,” and “respectful and professional.”
Justice David N. Wecht, who grew up in the Pittsburgh area and holds degrees from Yale, has a long record of public service and legal scholarship. He authored the 2017 majority decision that allowed underfunded school districts to challenge Pennsylvania’s school funding system—a case that led to record education spending. He also upheld emergency powers during the COVID-19 pandemic and defended Pittsburgh’s right to mandate paid sick leave. The Bar Association commended him for “well written” opinions and “fairness.”
Justice Christine Donohue, originally from Coaldale, is a Duquesne Law graduate with decades of experience as a civil litigator and judge. She has written major opinions on voting rights and reproductive access, including the 2022 decision upholding no-excuse mail voting and the 2024 Medicaid abortion funding case. The Bar Association described her as “well-prepared,” “smart and fair,” and “of impeccable character.” However, if retained, she may only serve two more years before reaching the state’s mandatory retirement age of 75 in 2027.
The current court’s influence is unmistakable. As WHYY noted, its rulings have shaped election laws, legislative maps, public health authority, and civil liberties. Advocates on both sides recognize that even a single change on the bench could tip the balance in closely contested cases. Malcolm Kenyatta, vice chair of the DNC, told NBC News that “the Republican plan here is to put the Supreme Court in a position where it cannot function, and then have the backstop of a much more conservative Commonwealth Court that will ultimately be the final say as we go into the midterm elections.”
The electorate itself remains in flux. A new Franklin & Marshall poll found all three justices with double-digit leads among likely voters, but large numbers remain undecided. With millions pouring into campaign coffers and national organizations mobilizing, the outcome is anything but certain.
As Pennsylvania heads into the final stretch before Election Day, the fate of its Supreme Court—and the direction of key policies on abortion, voting, and more—hangs in the balance. The result of these retention races may echo far beyond 2025, shaping the legal and political landscape for years to come.
