Live results: 2025 Pennsylvania Supreme Court election

CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. (AP) — Control of Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court hangs in the balance in statewide elections, when voters cast their ballots for the justices of the state’s three highest courts. Voters across the commonwealth will also vote in municipal elections, including high-profile races in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

He watches: Why Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court election has national implications

State Supreme Court Justices Christine Donohue, Kevin Dougherty and David Wecht — all Democrats — will appear on the Nov. 4 ballot in retention elections, where voters will decide whether to give incumbent jurists new terms on the Supreme Court. The term is 10 years, although Donohue must retire in 2027 when she reaches the mandatory retirement age of 75. While retention elections are often a quiet affair in Pennsylvania, this year’s campaign was heavily influenced by partisan politics.

Democrats have a 5-2 majority on the state Supreme Court, but Republicans have mounted a campaign to oust Donohue, Dougherty and Wicht. If voters decide not to retain the justice for another term, Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro could appoint an interim replacement, subject to approval by the Republican-controlled state Senate. A stalemate in the confirmation process could tie the court at 2-2 if voters oust all three justices this year. An election will be held to fill any vacancies for a full 10-year term in 2027.

The last election to retain the state Supreme Court was in 2017. The Republican justice was kept on the ballot that year with 68% of the vote, while the Democratic justice was kept on with 71% of the vote.

Voters will also decide races for other state courts, including the state Supreme Court and Commonwealth Court, the two state courts of appeals that are a step below the state Supreme Court.

In the race for mayor of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County Governor Cory O’Connor and Republican Tony Moreno are competing to replace outgoing Democratic incumbent Ed Gainey. O’Connor, a former Pittsburgh City Council member and son of the late Mayor Bob O’Connor, defeated Gainey in the May primary. Moreno, a former police officer, was the 2021 Republican mayoral candidate who lost to Gainey in the general election.

In Philadelphia, Democrat Larry Krasner is seeking a third term as district attorney against former Philadelphia Municipal Court Judge Pat Duggan. Duggan stepped down midway through his third term in 2024 to mount a challenge against Krasner for the Democratic nomination. Krasner defeated Duggan in the primary in May, but Duggan switched parties in August to run in the general election as a Republican.

Democrats won the recent general elections in both Pittsburgh and Philadelphia by wide margins. He defeated Gainey Moreno in the 2021 Pittsburgh mayoral race with about 71% of the vote. In Philadelphia, Krasner won re-election to a second term in 2021 with about 72% of the vote.

The Associated Press does not provide projections, and will declare a winner only when it is determined that no scenario exists that would allow the late nominees to close the gap. If the race is not called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or announcements of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet announced a winner and explain why.

Pennsylvania requires an automatic recount for statewide races with a vote margin of 0.5 percentage points or less. For out-of-state races, voters may petition their individual county elections board or the courts to order a recount. The AP may declare a winner in a race eligible for a recount if it can determine that the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

Here’s a look at what to expect on November 4.

When do the polls close?

Polls close at 8 p.m. ET.

What’s on the ballot?

The AP will present voting results and announce the winners in the retention elections for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Supreme Court and Commonwealth Court, and the general elections for the Supreme Court, Commonwealth Court, Mayor of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia District Attorney and Comptroller of Philadelphia.

Who is entitled to vote?

Any registered voter in Pennsylvania may participate in the statewide general election. Registered voters in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh may participate in their city’s general election.

What does turnout and advance voting look like?

As of October 6, there were about 3.8 million Democrats and 3.6 million Republicans registered in Pennsylvania. In Allegheny County, home to the city of Pittsburgh, Democrats made up nearly 55% of the county’s 912,000 registered voters, while Republicans made up about 29%. Democrats make up about 72% of the total 1.1 million registered voters in Philadelphia. Republicans made up about 12%.

Nearly 71,000 people voted in the 2021 general election for mayor of Pittsburgh, representing about 31% of registered voters at the time. Postal ballots accounted for about 35% of votes cast. Nearly 230,000 people voted in Philadelphia’s mayoral election that year, or about 22% of registered voters. About 32% of the votes came from mail-in ballots.

About 3.1 million votes were cast in the 2023 state Supreme Court general election, or roughly 36% of registered voters at that time. Mail-in votes made up about 26% of the total votes cast.

As of Monday, more than 571,000 of the 1.1 million absentee ballots requested statewide have already been cast. About 67% of those votes came from Democrats and about 25% from Republicans. Check AP’s early voting tracker for the latest update.

In Pittsburgh, more than 15,000 votes have been cast before Election Day through October 10. About 87% of those votes came from Democrats and about 8% from Republicans.

How long does it usually take to count votes?

In the 2024 presidential election, the AP first reported Pennsylvania’s results at 8 pm ET in Allegheny County just as polls closed. The first results were announced in Philadelphia at 8:08 PM ET. By noon the next day Eastern time, approximately 97% of the total statewide votes had been tabulated.

The tabulation process ended overnight in Allegheny County at 12:08 a.m. ET with about 97% of the votes counted and in Philadelphia at 1:56 a.m. ET with about 93% of the votes counted.

Are we there yet?

As of November 4, there will be 364 days until the 2026 midterm elections and 1,099 days until the 2028 general election.

-Robert Yuen, Associated Press

Associated Press writer Mark Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.

Find out more 2025 voting coverage