In Pennsylvania, on odd numbered years, statewide candidates for the Pa. Superior Court, Pa.Commonwealth Court and Pa. Supreme Court appear on the ballot. Most Pa. citizens have no idea around what cases the Superior and Commonwealth Courts typically handle and have only a vague notion of the cases that have come before the state Supreme Court. The Pa. Supreme Court is the highest court in Pa. and serves a role that is quite similar to the United States Supreme Court.
The Pa. Supreme Court interprets the constitutionality of state laws and has the final say on issues appealed from the lower state courts. The Pa. Supreme Court has seven members who are each elected to ten-year terms. Justices may seek reelection and must retire when they reach the age of 75. Like U.S. Supreme Court Justices, Pa. Supreme Court Justices can only be impeached for misbehavior in office by the state legislature, which has only happened once in our state’s history. Justices are allowed to hold party affiliations and currently there are four Democrats and two Republicans on the state Supreme Court. Last year, the death of Democratic Justice Max Baer created a vacancy on the court.
On the ballot this Nov. 7 are two candidates for the Pa. Superior Court and one candidate for Pa. Commonwealth Court. These are both statewide appellate courts which are second level appeals courts that each hear very different types of issues. The Superior Court handles appeals from all criminal and civil cases originating from the Court of Common Pleas. In taking on civil and criminal cases appealed in a lower court, the Superior Court operates much like the federal Circuit Courts. There are 15 Superior Court Justices in Pa. with one vacancy; it is currently comprised of seven Democrats and seven Republicans. In addition to the vacancy, Republican Justice John Bender will reach 75 this year and so his seat is also up for grabs. This means that the Nov. 7 election outcome will decide which party will have a majority of justices serving on the Superior Court.
Commonwealth Court takes on cases that are specifically brought against the state and its agencies. The Commonwealth Court is made up of nine members, currently five Republicans, three Democrats and a vacancy to be decided in the election. Like the Supreme Court, the Superior Court and Commonwealth Court both hear Constitutional questions; however, they take on a greater volume of questions than the Pa. Supreme Court does and therefore have even more sway on the direction of our state government.
At the local level, there are two lower courts operating at the county or city level: Courts of Common Pleas and Minor Courts. The 60 Courts of Common Pleas hear criminal, civil and custody trials. The Minor Courts are made up of hundreds of local Magisterial District Judges and Philadelphia and Pittsburgh municipal courts. Minor Courts are called first-level courts, as they are the first courts to hear criminal and civil complaints. Minor Court cases presented with sufficient evidence are then referred to Courts of Common Pleas for trial or disposition.
The Commonwealth Court election this year features Republican Megan Martin against Democrat Matt Wolf. Martin has a history as a parliamentarian within Pa.’s Senate and has served as an attorney for former Republican Pa. Governors Tom Ridge and Tom Corbett. Wolf has served as a justice on Philadelphia’s Municipal Court since 2017 and worked as a trial attorney for over 25 years.
The Superior Court race features two Republicans, Maria Battista and Harry Smail, and two Democrats, Jill Beck and Timika Lane. Smail and Lane have both served as justices for the Court of Common Pleas while Beck has clerked for the State Supreme Court for nine years, and Battista has worked for former Governors Corbett and Wolf as well as the Department of Defense. The most important election, however, has been the election for Pa. Supreme Court. This election features Superior Court Democrat Dan McCaffery against Montgomery County Judge Republican Carolyn Carluccio.
Jeff Yass, Pa.’s richest man, and his Commonwealth Leaders Fund PAC has poured over $2.7 million into the race in support of Carluccio making it the most expensive race in history for Pa. Supreme Court. In its history, the Pa. Supreme Court has been involved in landmark decisions including abortion rights, access to mail-in voting, voter-ID laws, political redistricting and a whole host of other issues important to Pennsylvanians.
