National Democrats announce six-figure investment in Supreme Court retention elections

National Democrats are wading into Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court retention elections, in which Pennsylvanians will decide whether three liberal justices on the high court will be retained for new 10-year terms. 

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which is devoted to electing Democrats to state legislatures across the country, revealed on Monday that it will spend six figures to encourage voters to retain Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justices Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty and David Wecht – all of whom will be on the ballot this November. 

In retention elections, voters have the option to vote “yes” or “no” on whether to retain each judge for an additional 10 years. The elections are technically nonpartisan, as no political party or affiliation is listed on the ballot. 

All three of the justices up for retention were elected as Democrats in 2015, when they swept elections for three open seats on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Donohue, Dougherty and Wecht recently made their case for retention during a fireside chat in Philadelphia, where they also discussed partisanship in the courts, while also offering a window into what the court’s day-to-day operations look like. 

The Pennsylvania Bar Association has recommended all three justices for retention. 

Heather Williams, the president of the DLCC, cited the “major implications” of November’s retention elections when announcing the six-figure investment.“The DLCC is clear-eyed on the major implications that these Pennsylvania state Supreme Court races will have on Democratic legislators’ ability to deliver on their agenda in Harrisburg, as well as the redistricting process at the end of this decade,” Williams said in a statement. “Extremist Republicans have made it crystal clear they are willing to use the judiciary to keep themselves in power, and we will not stand back and allow them to undermine the voices of the voters in Pennsylvania or anywhere else.”

The DLCC’s decision to put money into Pennsylvania’s retention elections comes as its GOP counterpart, the Republican State Leadership Committee, also looks to influence the high-stakes elections. 

Spotlight PA reported last week that the RSLC has spent at least $85,000 on digital ads through Meta and Google asking voters to vote “No in November” on Donohue, Dougherty and Wecht. 

This isn’t the first time the DLCC has gotten involved in the commonwealth’s judicial elections: The organization made a six-figure investment in Justice Daniel McCaffery’s bid for the high court, which was ultimately successful.