Skip to main content

Follow Us

Social networking will appear here

Support Us

Join  |   Donate

Contact Us

info@lwvpgh.org
Phone 412-261-4284
LWV of Greater Pittsburgh
436 Seventh Avenue
Suite 350
Pittsburgh PA 15219
Copyright 2022 All Rights Reserved Privacy Policy Terms of Use Powered by ClubExpress
      
Vote411 Join Us Donate

HomeJudicial Candidates
Judicial Candidates
2025 Primary Election 

Information for Allegheny County Voters
gavel2_no_response.png

On this Page:


In the 2025 Primary Election, Allegheny County voters will be choosing the Democratic and Republican nominees for the November, General Election ballot.  In 2025, there are open judicial seats on:
  • Statewide Courts - PA Supreme Court and Superior Court
  • Countywide Court - Court of Common Pleas
  • Local Courts - Magisterial District Courts
For more information about Pennsylvania's court system, see our PA Courts page.
2025 Primary Pages
Candidate Information for Statewide Courts
Pennsylvania Supreme, Superior, and Commonwealth Courts
Candidates for State Appellate Courts

Democratic and Republican candidates are chosen in the May Primary.

Third party candidates, if any,  will be added after their filing deadline in August.

Justice of the Supreme Court
1 opening

Democratic Primary: 

  • Brandon Neuman

Republican Primary (choose 1) :  

  • Maria Battista
  • Ann Marie Wheatcraft

 

Judge of the Superior Court
1 opening


Democratic Primary

  • Stella Tsai

Republican Primary (choose 1)

  • Matt Wolford
  • Josh Prince

Judge of the Commonwealth Court
No open seats in 2025

Candidate Guide - we're working on it...

Coming Soon - the Vote411 "Mini-Guide" for Pennsylvania's Statewide Judicial Races

All candidates have provided responses including:
  • Biographical and Educational background
  • Answers to survey questions
  • Links to their websites and social media accounts
Use the links provided in the mini-guide to learn more about these candidates.

You can find information about all races on your ballot by entering your address at Vote411.org.  


All information in the mini-guide is taken from Vote411.org, a project of the League of Women Voters, and the LWVPA Citizen Education Fund.


More Resources
Pennsylvania Bar Association Ratings and Questionnaires

Candidates for Countywide Courts
Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas
Primary Candidates for the Court of Common Pleas

Judge of the Court of Common Pleas
8 Openings

There are 22 Candidates for the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. 

Please visit our Common Pleas Video Gallery  for information on these 22 candidates.

  • watch short video selfies of each candidate speaking about their courtroom experience and their views on alternative sentencing.  
  • link to the Allegheny County Bar Association Ratings for the candidates
  • find Vote411 information and voter guides as they become available.
More Resources
Allegheny County Bar Association Candidate Ratings
(Recommendations for retention questions are at the top of the page.  Scroll down for judicial candidates.)
Candidate Information for Magisterial District Courts
in Allegheny County
Candidates for Magisterial District Courts
Allegheny County has 46 Magisterial District Courts.   7 of these Magisterial District Judge seats are up for reelection in 2025.  In some cases, only one candidate is running for the position.  These are the 4 districts with competitive races:
Magisterial District 05-02-13
McKeesport, Versailles


Democratic Primary

  • Michael E. Cherepko (D, R)

  • Joe Pero (D,R)


Republican Primary

  • Michael E. Cherepko (D, R)

  • Joe Pero (D,R)

Magisterial District 05-02-14  
Dravosburg, Rankin Borough, West Mifflin, Whitaker

Democratic Primary

  • Aisha I. Tate (D)
  • Richard D. Olasz, Jr.  (D/R)

Republican Primary
  • Richard D. Olasz, Jr.  (D/R)

Magisterial District 05-2-18
Baldwin, Brentwood


Democratic Primary

  • Candice Stockey Seymour (D)
  • Harold Smith, Jr.  (D/R)
  • Richard Schubert (D/R)

Republican Primary

  • Harold Smith, Jr.  (D/R)
  • Richard Schubert (D/R)


Magisterial District 05-2-28
City of Pittsburgh, Wards 1, 2, 3 and 5


Democratic Primary

  • Jeff Woodward (D)
  • Oscar J. Petite, Jr.   (D/R)


Republican Primary

  • Oscar J. Petite, Jr.   (D/R)

 

Judicial Retention Questions
Retention Questions


There will not be any retention questions on the Primary ballot.  Retention questions are always placed on the General Election ballot in November.   

 
Accordion Widget
What is Judicial Retention? (click to expand)
What is Judicial Retention? (click to expand)

Judicial retention is a way of re-electing judges without repeating the partisan competition and campaigning of a typical election. 


In Pennsylvania, judges are elected to the state courts for 10 year terms. When judges are elected to a state court for the first time, they run in partisan campaigns and may compete against other candidates. Then, when their 10-year terms are over, they are up for retention.  In a retention election:

  • No other candidates are permitted to run for the seat.
  • The judge's political party is not listed.
  • Voters are asked a simple yes/no question: Should we keep this judge for another 10-year term, or not? 

This is meant to keep judges out of partisan politics as much as possible. It is very unusual for a judge to lose a retention vote. 

Evaluating Candidates for Judge
Judicial Campaign Rules
Candidates for judge are not allowed to state their views on any issues that may come up in a court case.    Voters may care very much about recent court rulings on election law, reproductive rights, gun safety and other issues, but judicial candidates cannot answer questions about, or campaign on these issues.  This can make it challenging for voters to choose between candidates.
Vote411.org

Visit Vote411.org and enter your address to see which candidates will be on your ballot. 

If they responded to our invitation, you will find biographical data and survey responses, along with website and social media contact information.

Use the  links provided to visit a candidate's campaign website or view their social media accounts for a fuller picture of the candidate.
Vote411 logo
Bar Association Ratings

The Allegheny County Bar Association (ACBA) and the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) rate candidates for county and state-wide courts.  You can also view the candidate's Personal Data Questionnaire that was submitted for review for a fuller picture of the candidate's work experience.  

Candidates are rated as Highly Recommended, Recommended, or Not Recommended based on an interview and records review by a bipartisan committee of their peers.  You can find explanations of these ratings on the ACBA website.   

View the ratings and questionnaires from:

Candidate Endorsements

Advocacy groups and politicians may endorse judicial candidates.
Although candidates for judge cannot state their views on any issues, advocacy groups and other politicians can state their views on judges.   Single issue advocacy groups often issue endorsements of judicial candidates based on their knowledge of the candidate's record.  Candidates may post these endorsements on their campaign websites, or the advocacy group may publish a list of endorsements.  Try an internet search like "Jane McDoe Commonwealth Court endorsements." 


"The Voter" - Newsletter of LWVPGH