In purple Pennsylvania, Democrats better mobilized their voters and swept all statewide judicial races.
In purple Pennsylvania, Democrats mobilized their voters better and swept all statewide judicial races in this off-year election. Pennsylvania results are considered unofficial until the votes are certified, which takes days.
Justice of Supreme Court
In the Pennsylvania Supreme Court race, the state’s highest court, Democratic candidate Daniel McCaffery, received 54 percent or 1,632,786 votes compared to Republican candidate Carolyn Carluccio with 46 percent or 1,386,150 votes as of 11:30 p.m. according to Pennsylvania Department of State results.
Mr. McCaffery is currently a Superior Court judge; Ms. Carluccio is currently the president judge of the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas.
Mr. McCaffery will fill the seat left vacant by former Democratic Chief Justice Max Baer, who died in September 2022, just months before turning 75, the mandatory retirement age.
The state Supreme Court remains majority Democrat, with five Democratic justices and two Republicans.
Mr. McCaffery largely used pro-abortion attack advertisements against Ms. Carluccio, who opposes abortion.
In recent years, contested procedural issues relating to elections have been heard by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The court may be called on again to settle such disputes, making the balance of the court an important factor in state and national politics.
The annual salary for a Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice is $244,793.
Judge of Superior Court
In the Pennsylvania Superior Court, voters chose between four candidates, two Republican and two Democratic, for two seats. The court’s 15 seats are currently comprised of seven Republican and seven Democratic judges plus one vacancy.
Voters were filling a vacancy and naming a replacement for Republican Judge John T. Bender, who reaches the mandatory retirement age of 75 this year.
With the addition of two Democratic judges, the court balance will be eight Democrats and seven Republicans.
The annual salary for a judge of the Superior Court is $230,974.
From top vote-getters to lowest, here are the results in the superior court race as of 11:30 p.m.
By Beth Brelje
