This November, three Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justices–Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty, and David Wecht--are facing retention elections. They are all Democrats, and collectively make up the difference in the current 5-2 Democratic majority in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of a retention election, according to Ballotpedia, retention electrons are "a type of election where voters are asked whether an incumbent judge should remain in office for another term. The judge, who does not face an opponent, is removed from the position if a certain percentage of voters (often 50%) indicate that he or she should not be retained." In Pennsylvania, that threshold is, in fact, 50%.
If Donohue, Dougherty and Wecht they are all defeated for retention, then ideological control of the court in this often decisive swing state would be deadlocked. The Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate would be able to block whatever nominees it wished from Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro.
These retention elections have national implications. Once it was controlled by Democrats after the 2015 elections, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned one of the worst Republican gerrymanders in the country, which helped Democrats retake the House of Representatives in 2018. It also rejected all lawsuits from Donald Trump in 2020 when he attempted to overturn that election. It is no wonder that Republicans want to defeat Donohue, Dougherty and Wecht, as they have consistently served as the guarantors of fair elections in Pennsylvania.
I have created this ActBlue page so that you can split a donation four ways between Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty, David Wecht and Bowers News Media PAC. If you wish, you can adjust the amount that you would like to donate to each entity. You can also click through the links on their names–Christine Donohue, Kevin M. Dougherty, and David N. Wecht–to find out more about each justice, and to donate to them directly on their campaign websites.
Please, if you are able, split a donation between Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty, David Wecht and Bowers News Media PAC. As we approach the 2026 and 2028 elections, let's keep one of the most important state Supreme Courts in our country blue.