Supreme Court seat undecided; Pgh. has 1st Black mayor
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania voters made their choices Tuesday to fill open seats on statewide appeals courts, amid light turnout statewide and a marquee race for a seat on the state Supreme Court that will not change the Democrats’ majority on the state’s high court.
In Pittsburgh, Democrat Ed Gainey became the first Black mayor of Pennsylvania’s second-most populous city, shouting to a crowd of cheering supporters a message of unity and that they were “one city, one Pittsburgh.”
Counties began wrapping up their vote counts after polls closed, but it was too early to call statewide races before 11:30 p.m.
In nearby Delaware County, a court order allowed the county three extra days to accept and tabulate any of the approximately 5,500 ballots that a vendor mailed later than expected, as long as they were postmarked before polls closed.
Election officials otherwise reported no significant problems while turnout was expected to hit 25% to 30% of registered voters.
Democrats went into Election Day with a 5-2 majority on the state Supreme Court that has played critical roles in settling fights over last year’s presidential election and Gov. Tom Wolf’s use of authority to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The sole vacancy, opening with the mandatory retirement this year of Republican Justice Thomas Saylor, is being contested by two lower-court judges — Republican Kevin Brobson from Commonwealth Court and Democrat Maria McLaughlin from Superior Court.
Brobson received 1,172,484 votes to defeat McLaughlin, who received 1,062,401 votes, according to unofficial results. In Butler Couty, Brobson received 28,322 votes to defeat McLaughin, who received 15,000 votes, according to unofficial results.
There are also contested races for a single spot on Superior Court and two seats on Commonwealth Court.
For Superior Court, former Chester County and state prosecutor Megan Sullivan, a Republican, faces Democrat Timika Lane, a Common Pleas Court judge in Philadelphia.
Sullivan received 1,242,698 votes to defeat Lane, who received 981,466 votes, according to unofficial results. In Butler County, Sullivan received 29,680 votes to defeat Lane, who received 13,499 votes, according to unofficial results.
The Democrats seeking Commonwealth Court seats are Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Lori Dumas and Allegheny County Common Pleas Court Judge David Spurgeon. The Republicans are Bradford County lawyer Stacy Wallace and Drew Crompton, a former Senate GOP aide running for a permanent spot on the court after being appointed to it temporarily last year. Two seats were open in the election.
Wallace led the field with 1,135,302 votes followed by Crompton, who received 1,065,822 votes, according to unofficial results. In Butler County, Wallace received 27,171 votes and Crompton received 25,962 votes, according to unofficial results.
Dumas received 997,285 votes, including 13,975 from the county, and Spurgeon received 903,489 votes, including 12,861 from the county.
Four statewide judges are also seeking to stay on the bench for 10 more years in up-or-down “retention” races: Superior Court judges John Bender and Mary Jane Bowes and Commonwealth Court judges Anne Covey and Renee Cohn Jubelirer.
The judges who win could end up ruling in an array of high-profile cases pending in state courts, from abortion rights to public school funding to whether the state’s mail-in voting law is constitutional.
The most notable of the state’s mayoral contests was in Pittsburgh, where Gainey, a five-term state House member, became the city’s first African-American mayor after being heavily favored against Republican Tony Moreno.
“Look at the image we are showing our children,” Gainey, in a hoarse voice, shouted to the celebrating crowd at the downtown Benedum Center for the Performing Arts. “I want our children to see a city for all of them.”
In Scranton, Democrat Paige Cognetti declared victory for a second term and, in Harrisburg, Democrat Wanda Williams declared victory over Mayor Eric Papenfuse, who lost to Williams in the primary and ran as a write-in candidate. Results were not yet official in those races.
In Philadelphia, Democrat Larry Krasner won another term as district attorney, beating high-profile criminal defense lawyer Chuck Peruto, the Republican nominee, and getting the go-ahead to continue his progressive overhaul of the office.
Democrats won two special elections for open seats in Democratic-leaning districts in the state House of Representatives. Thom Welby won an open Scranton-area seat, while Gina Curry won the other in Delaware County.
For many voters, local races on the ballot Tuesday are the major attraction, contests that include county judge, district attorney, school board, district judge, mayor and city council.
